the roots.

I sent my mom a shopping list a week before Thanksgiving–I make the dinner in our house, but she’s in charge of supplies. “I’ve got a veg pickup on Tuesday afternoon,” I told her, “so I’ll just bring home whatever I get and maybe we’ll have a little extra.”

WE HAD A LOT OF EXTRA.

I was not counting on showing up in New York with literally twenty pounds of root vegetables, only to walk into my mother’s kitchen and be faced with–yeah–another twenty pounds of root vegetables. On Sunday I wound up back in Boston with 2 giant butternut squash, five giant red onions, seven or eight red bliss potatoes, almost a dozen yams, and an enormous honking bag of carrots and parsnips. Plus I still have a pumpkin and two acorn squash. Oh and also a monster rutabaga. And a leftover bag of fresh cranberries. And also a big bag of string beans. And two celery roots. And some kale that, let’s face it, is going to wind up in the trash. 

Just so we’re clear: I live with a boy who likes neither squash nor sweet potatoes. Or parsnips, for that matter. 

OK good talk. 

So far: shepherd’s pie with ground turkey very, VERY loosely based on Rachael’s recipe. Butternut squash scones with cranberries, walnuts, and white chocolate chips, half of which got delivered to the neighbors this morning. Roasted string beans with olive oil, sea salt, and pepper.  Tonight: guacamole burgers (to kill an onion or two) and Ina’s mashed yellow turnips. Later this week: Bethany’s delicious-looking butternut squash risotto, a pumpkin pie, and maybe some sweet potato muffins. 

Help: Parsnip recipes, anybody? Hopefully ones that taste a little bit…not like parsnip?

No really I have a million parsnips.