The BeeHolder, January 2010

The honey here enhances the natural sweetness of the parsnips.

Ingredients (Serves 6)

900 Gram Parsnips, (2 lb)
2 Tablespoon Olive Oil
50 Gram Butter (2 oz)
Thumb size of fresh ginger
1lb jar of honey of which only 2 Tablespoon honey will be used.

Method

Peel a piece of ginger about the size of a (man’s) thumb. Dice into small cubes and stir into a 1 lb jar of honey. The longer the ginger is in the honey the better. Prepare now for Xmas 2010, but a few week’s steeping will whet your appetite for repeating this recipe.

Pre-heat oven to 220 °C/425 °F/Gas 7. Peel and quarter the parsnips longways, cutting out any woody centres. Pre-heat a roasting tray on top of the stove and add the oil and butter. Fry the parsnips until golden brown on all sides. Roast them in the pre-heated oven for 15 minutes, turning occasionally.

Pour the honey over the parsnips and carefully turn them, making sure they have all been covered. Make sure that each parsnip has some of the diced ginger on top. Put them back in the oven for 10 minutes. The parsnips will now be tender and sweet. Stir them in a serving dish and spoon some of the honey glaze from the pan over the top to finish.

Do not worry if the honey has set, just spoon dollups onto each parsnip, it will run down the sides and leave the cubes of ginger behind. Never worry about the slight burns on the parsnips: the “charcoal” counter-acts the effects of Brussels Sprouts!

The rest of the gingered honey can be used on Vanilla ice cream for children and grown-ups with a sweet tooth and a discerning palate

Tony Shaw