This carrots and rutabagas recipe is a great side dish any time, but particularly appropriate during the winter months and especially for the Holiday table. People will love it; just tell them it’s carrots.
My best advice is not to ignore this recipe just because it calls for a vegetable you may not be familiar with, namely rutabagas. I will admit that many supermarket check-out people are mystified when the large, unlovely rutabaga rolls up to their register. Dark purple-brown and usually coated with a layer of wax, the rutabaga does not have a lot of eye appeal. But didn’t your mother tell you not to judge a book by its cover?
Description
Carrots and Rutabagas is my favorite side dish for the holidays.
Ingredients
- 4 to 5 good-sized carrots
- 1 medium rutabaga (about the size of a large grapefruit)
- 1 teaspoon salt
- 3 to 4 tablespoons butter
- salt and pepper to taste
Instructions
- The process is a lot like preparing mashed potatoes. Wash and peel the carrots (or don’t peel, if that’s your style), and cut into one-inch chunks. Peel the rutabaga (see below), and cut into one-inch chunks.
- Put the vegetables and 1 teaspoon salt in a large saucepan with enough water to cover. Put a lid on the pan and bring to a boil over medium heat. Lower heat and simmer 30 to 40 minutes until carrots and rutabaga pieces are fork tender. Drain well, leaving the vegetables in the saucepan.
- Add the butter, in pieces, to the hot, drained vegetables and return the lid to the pan. While you’re doing something else, the butter will melt.
- Once the butter is melted, add several generous grinds of fresh black pepper to the vegetables. You can either roughly mash them together with a potato masher, or just stir briskly with a stout spoon. Taste, and adjust salt and pepper, if necessary.
- Makes about 10 servings.
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