I tried turnips today!

[Peej]

I had never tried a turnip before today. I'm extremely picky with my veggies, though this WOE is forcing me to try some new things so I don't get bored with what I'm eating.

I decided to be adventurous and pick up some turnips the other day. I chopped one up, cooked in some boiling water, added to a skillet with some butter, a little bit of diced onion, and some leftover corned beef from St. Patricks Day. Sooo yummy! It didn't get quite as crunchy or stick together like corned beef hash but it certainly is yummy.

The best part is that I thought for sure I would pig out and eat the whole thing, but I was totally satisfied after a small bowl with a poached egg on top. That means I'll be able to bring some leftovers to my dad who is prediabetic. His doctor recommended a low GI diet, but he is a definite carb addict. I know he will love it! I need to try new things more often, that was definitely a treat!

[C P]

Re: I tried turnips today!

Good for you for being adventurous and trying something new to keep you on track. Turnip was one of the veg I 're-discovered' on Atkins this time. Take a look in the recipe section for the 'Tasty Turnip Bake' I posted - I think I put it in the 'side dishes' section. It was yummy.

Hmmmm - I have some corned beef - another one to try!



CP

[not2late]

Re: I tried turnips today!

I love turnips!

Whenever I make the faux mashed potato recipe with cauliflower, I add some turnip to it (3 parts cauli to 1 part turnip.) It gives it a more "potatoey" because the turnip has an earthy flavor the cauliflower lacks.

Turnip is also good in stews.

If you like turnips, you might want to try kohlrabi.

It has a milder flavor and the leaves are edible too.

Another interesting Induction legal root veggie is the celery root or celeriac. It looks ugly:


But once you peel off the skin it has a creamy white interior. It has a mild celery flavor. It can be mashed like potatoes or shredded raw in a salad with mayonnaise dressing. It can also be fried like potato chips/crisps. In fact, it's one of the 2 Induction friendly veggies that can be successfully fried crisp. The other Induction veggie is pumpkin--fresh pumpkin.

I also like making a creamy soup using a little of each of these veggies: cauliflower, turnip, celeriac, kohlrabi, and leeks/onions. I just cook them with oil until wilted. Add chicken broth and water. Bring to a boil and simmer until very soft. Then toss into a blender and puree until smooth. It has a flavor similar (and appearance) to leek and potato soup. And of course, if it's served cold with a dash of heavy cream it's vichyssoise. It's very versatile, because if you use clam juice or fish stock it makes a wonderful chowder base. Or if you leave it sort of thick, you can use it as a "white sauce" for other vegetable/meat casseroles.

So enjoy your veggie experimentation and happy eating!

[not2late]

Re: I tried turnips today!

Here's the link to the celeriac chips/crisps recipe. It also has directions for pumpkin chips.

http://www.atkinsdietbulletinboard.com/forums/snacks/3840-snack-chips-induction-legal.html

[Peej]

Re: I tried turnips today!

Sounds delicious! I've been looking for the celery root around but nowhere around here seems to have them. I gotta take it it one step at a time as I'm kind of a picky eater but I have decided to try at least one new food a week. I tried catfish yesterday!

Also, thanks so much for the suggestions, especially the chowder base idea. I've been looking for a legal way to have a non-potato clam chowder (I'm from Rhode Island, I can't do without!) without going over on my cream. I can't wait to try it! I've been making a lot of soups and freezing them lately, its great to be able to have a cup of soup with lunch.

[not2late]

Re: I tried turnips today!

I'm from Maryland, so I understand your want for regional seafood dishes (we have crab cakes, crab soup, cream of crab soup, etc.) Surprizingly the Grand Central Station Oyster Stew can be made Atkins friendly by nixing the milk and using diluted heavy cream.

[imagood1]

Re: I tried turnips today!

The way I've eaten turnips since I was a kid is to treat them like mashed potatoes -- take the skin off, chop into pieces, boil and when they are tender drain the water off, add butter, salt, pepper & cream -- that are delicious!

[SunnySmile501]

Re: I tried turnips today!

Sounds delicious! I've been looking for the celery root around but nowhere around here seems to have them. I gotta take it it one step at a time as I'm kind of a picky eater but I have decided to try at least one new food a week. I tried catfish yesterday!

Also, thanks so much for the suggestions, especially the chowder base idea. I've been looking for a legal way to have a non-potato clam chowder (I'm from Rhode Island, I can't do without!) without going over on my cream. I can't wait to try it! I've been making a lot of soups and freezing them lately, its great to be able to have a cup of soup with lunch.

I make awesome clam chowder using turnip in place of potato. I use a bottle of clam juice to give it lots of flavor, so the diluted cream doesn't taste watery. My family doesn't notice that the chowder doesn't have any potato--they think the turnip is potato.

I use turnip anywhere I would use potato. No one in my family notices that my "potato" salad has no potatoes! I use turnips.

[SunnySmile501]

Re: I tried turnips today!

I'm from Maryland, so I understand your want for regional seafood dishes (we have crab cakes, crab soup, cream of crab soup, etc.) Surprizingly the Grand Central Station Oyster Stew can be made Atkins friendly by nixing the milk and using diluted heavy cream.

I recently adapted recipes for seafood bisque for my cookbook and it was delicious. We used to have a restaurant that had the best she-crab soup (the chef had been at Hilton Head for a few years), and I would love to make that soon. That was back in my low fat days, and she-crab soup was a really bad cheat back then.

[Peej]

Re: I tried turnips today!

I'm so excited that I have so many things to try. This weekend I am definitely going to try a clam chowder for sure. I'm definitely loving that this WOE has given me motivation to try new things!

We never ate turnips when I was growing up. It was all potato. I did get my dad to try and he couldn't tell it wasn't potato until I told him.

I'm definitely going to try the celery root crisps sometime soon. My mom is missing her potato chips very much and I want to keep her motivated with some crunchy snacks.

[not2late]

Re: I tried turnips today!

Isn't Atkins a great diet? All the "bad" food are now "good" foods like eggs, heavy cream, real butter, real cheese, etc.?

[Peej]

Re: I tried turnips today!

I tried cauliflower (yes that's correct, I had never ever had cauliflower before) and avocado yesterday. I'm expanding my horizons. I loved the cauliflower. I had a little just steamed with some butter and then tried out the cauliflower pizza crust which was quite yummy. The avocado I'm not sure on. I really love the texture of it but I thought it would have more taste to it. I suppose once I find the right application, I may like it but if not, at least I tried it.

Still hunting down that celery root lol.

[Desertthorn]

Re: I tried turnips today!

Jicama if your really adventurous. Its like a slightly sweet apple.

[Peej]

Re: I tried turnips today!

I'd love to try jicama but I have never seen it anywhere. I'll keep an eye out for it for sure. Basically at this point I'm watching out for any legal veggies that I haven't tried yet. You used to have to fight with me to get me to try veggies and now I'm actively searching. My family was a pure potato/corn/bread/noodle side dish kind of family. Maybe a little green beans every now and again. Now we have roasted veggies with our dinner nearly every night. I think I might be more excited about actually enjoying veggies than I am about the weight loss going along with it!

Everything tastes different now. The only foods I'm still having issues with are cheeses and condiments. I can't eat mustard or mayo. I can't stomach mustard at all! I even tried making my own mayo figuring that if it didn't have a bunch of added stuff I might like it. It was better, but I'll only put it on stuff to try to get more fat in my diet when I'm eating very lean meats.