Savory Mashed Root Vegetables: Thanksgiving in June

You've heard of Christmas in July? And if we back it up a month, we have… Thanksgiving in June! Seeing as the pros are busy testing Thanksgiving recipes now, I figure I wasn’t too far off base enjoying turkey and trimmings on the edge of summer.

Actually my menu was dictated by my fridge (and, not to be forgotten, my freezer). Along with lovely spring/summer produce like strawberries, peaches, spring onions, and sugar snap peas, my farm box people are continuing to offer produce that we’ve enjoyed through the winter: delicious collards, kale, and a variety of root vegetables.

Back in January, in a burst of practicality, I roasted a 28 pound turkey, using the same Tyler Florence method that I had enjoyed on Thanksgiving. It seemed reasonable at the time; we had enough for several meals and more than enough left over for the freezer, including an entire turkey breast. “I wonder,” I said to myself in January, “why don’t I cook a whole turkey more often than just for Thanksgiving?” Here’s one answer to that question – I will have so many leftovers that I will end up having a turkey dinner in April, and again in … June!

We had the perfect meal, if you ignore the little fact that the mercury outside was topping 87 degrees: turkey breast, homemade brown rice bread, Brazilian-style kale and collards, and mashed root vegetables. I realized too late that I could have thawed some turkey drippings and made gravy (like I did in April)... and it really would have been Thanksgiving in June! The only nod to the actual season? We had peach ice cream rather than pumpkin pie for dessert!

But let’s talk about the mashed root vegetables. Over the years I've done a fair amount of travel through Scotland, so I'm pretty familiar with mashed "neeps," or turnips. I like them pretty well, but they are usually a bit on the sweet side for me. When I saw Tyler Florence's recipe for Savory Mashed Root Vegetables I knew I had to try it. I loved the idea of boosting the savory quotient by infusing cream with fresh herbs before adding it to the mashed vegetables. An added bonus: I liked the idea of using Tyler’s mash recipe to accompany the turkey breast I had roasted using Tyler’s method.

n.o.e.’s notes:

- I made a half recipe, using the root vegetables that were in my fridge: large turnip, small beet, several yellow carrots, 2 small radishes.

- I increased the garlic cloves from 2 to 3.

--To reduce the richness of the recipe, I substituted some milk for cream. I also reduced the overall amount of liquid, so for half recipe, I used2.5 oz cream and 4 oz whole milk.

- I kept the same butter-to-liquid ratio as Tyler's recipe: (1T per 1/4 cup liquid), so that was 3 T butter in my case.

- For infusing the cream/milk, I used 1 sprig rosemary, 5 or 6 of thyme, and 1 or 2 of oregano, all from the herb garden. I cut through the pile a couple of times with a knife before putting it in the saucepan.

- My veggies took a little longer than 30 minutes of simmering before the were tender.

- Even though I reduced the amount of liquid, there was a bit too much; I had several tablespoons left over.

- My mash was still lumpy after mashing with my hand masher, and was separating, so I lightly ran the immersion blender through the mash.

the verdict:

I loved the way the savory herbs, the garlic, and seasoning transformed these simple roots into a delicious dish - a perfect accompaniment to roast turkey. I’m glad I included a bit of radish, as it added just a hint of a bite to the finished dish. The herb-infusion really added a wonderful depth of flavor, and kept the roots from being too sweet for my taste. The half recipe lasted us for 3 meals and it was delicious re-heated as leftovers! I can see myself ordering roots from my farm box just to make this recipe - it would be a great side dish for any meat or poultry main.

I'm submitting this to Tyler Florence Fridays, a weekly roundup of delicious food made from Tyler Florence recipes, natch! Stop by any Friday and see what the TFF bloggers are cooking up!