I was first introduced to parsnips (the first root vegetable other than carrots or potatoes I’d ever had) when I was completing a semester abroad in England.  Over Spring Holiday, some friends and I visited our English friend Carl in Liverpool for a few days, whose family was kind enough to house us.  

Carl’s mum prepared us a classic Sunday roast, complete with savory roasted carrots and parsnips.  Taking my first bite of this blonde foreign vegetable that bore a similar resemblance to the carrots it was co-mingling with, I was surprised to find that parsnips tasted nothing like carrots.  They may be cousins in the vegetable world, but this vegetable tasted more distinguished and exotic in some way – still sweet like the carrots but piney, conjuring up warm, earthy flavors associated with fall.  I was intrigued.

This season, you can find a wealth of root vegetables at your local farmer’s market.  Whether it’s sweet potatoes, celery root, rutabagas or of course, parsnips, it’s time to get creative in the kitchen and there are infinite, mouthwatering possibilities!

• Parsnips.  I first made parsnips shortly upon my return to the States, proudly introducing them to my family as the cool, unassuming vegetable I tried in England.  I made a Sara Foster dish, from her book Fresh Every Day, where she peels and slices the parsnips like fries, tosses them with melted butter, olive oil, cider vinegar, apple cider and fresh rosemary and caramelizes them in the oven.  This yields the most flavorful, inventive take on French fries I’ve experienced and they were a hit with my family, leaving us all pleasantly bewildered.  It’s now one of my staple fall vegetable recipes and I’ve shared it with many other friends who had never tasted parsnips before.  You can also puree them into a creamy soup or mash, or roast them with olive oil, thyme and honey.
• Celery Root.  Don’t be discouraged by its somewhat humble, unappetizing name.  This one may surprise you.  Literary foodie, blogger and author, Molly Wizenberg even professed her love to the vegetable in one of her Cooking Life columns for Bon Appétit Magazine.  She suggests a salad of celery root, fennel and apple with hazelnut vinaigrette. You can also boil and mash the celery root, mix it with some Yukon gold potatoes, butter and cream as Sara Foster does or try Saveur Magazine’s recipe, and this makes for an excellent side to roast duck.
• Rutabaga.  These turnip like root vegetables make a surprising addition to a pot pie.  Try roasting your rutabagas and make a savory veggie pot pie with this recipe.
• Yams/Sweet Potatoes.  Forgo the typical candied yams or sweet potato casserole this Thanksgiving and try a sweet potato pie like this one.  Sweet potato pancakes also make for a tasty fall breakfast and sweet potatoes or yams pair excellently with a beef or lentil stew.
• Butternut Squash.  It may not be a root vegetable but it sure acts like one! Like other root vegetables, butternut squash is a delicious accompaniment to a fall dinner party or Thanksgiving soiree.  Surely most of us have had some exquisite version of butternut squash bisque or another and it’s common to see plump ravioli and gnocchi with dainty pockets full of this buttery, sweet squash.  But even more unique is butternut squash as a pizza topping or adorning a galette/tart, or even baked into a breakfast muffin.  

Hayley Teater is a chronicler of all things food-related, particularly of the dessert persuasion. She writes for her blog Tiptoes in the Kitchen (hayleygolightly.wordpress.com), which covers her various food escapades and interesting tales from the kitchen.