Roasted Turnips with Caraway & Dillweed

Roasting brings out a deep, mellow sweetness in sometimes-sharp or bitter root vegetables, and roasted turnips are no exception.  For best flavor use young little turnips instead of the baseball (or larger!) size ones.  If small enough, simply quarter the peeled turnips.  But if using some larger ones, just make sure all the turnip chunks are roughly the same size.  This recipe makes two to three hearty side servings, and there's no reason why you couldn't multiply the quantities to make more servings.  I served this with crab cakes tonight, but the German-inspired flavors would also pair well with bratwurst and other German dishes, as well as roast chicken, roast beef, steak and brisket.  A dollop of sour cream (or nonfat Greek yogurt) or creamy horseradish sauce would certainly complement these turnips.

Ingredients
1 1/2 lbs turnips
2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 Tbs caraway seeds
Kosher salt
Coarsely ground pepper (my pepper mill had white peppercorns in it, but you can certainly use black pepper or other types of peppercorns)
1/2 tsp dried dillweed
Optional:  Fresh dillweed to garnish

Preheat oven to 425°F.  Trim, peel and chop the turnips into same-size chunks. Place in a large bowl with olive oil and caraway seeds, and toss to coat evenly.  Spread the turnips in a single layer on a baking sheet or pan, sprinkle lightly with Kosher salt and coarsely-ground pepper (a few twists from your pepper mill if using), then roast at 425°F for 30 minutes.  Remove from oven, carefully turn over the turnip pieces, and continue to roast until very tender (but not falling apart) and golden-brown.  Total cooking time could be from 45 to 60 minutes, depending on your oven.  When done, remove turnips from oven, transfer to bowl and gently toss with dried dillweed (a wooden spoon works well for this).  Serve hot and garnish with fresh dillweed if desired, and/or a dollop of sour cream, nonfat Greek yogurt, or creamy horseradish sauce.

Zestfully yours,
Gloria
Carolina Sauce Company