Aren’t those irresistible? Turnips tend to be forgotten as a vegetable, even though often used in soups. In France we eat turnips in so many ways, and we even use their leaves in soups. I love turnips, they have a peppery taste and are equally delicious, roasted with lavender salt, braised, or even steamed. They always make great presentations and combine tons of wonderful flavors. Stuffed turnips like any other root vegetable are delicious, I rarely make them, once in a while I get that particular urge, but it’s rare.

Navet in French means of course turnip, but also can be used in a more familiar language to refer to a bad movie, quel navet! meaning, what a lousy movie!

One block down the street, we have a “fruit and vegetable barn” a great little grocery store filled with fresh fruits and vegetables of all kinds, owned by a very funny Greek guy, who sometimes works at the cash register making jokes with its clients. This morning he started singing La Marseillaise (the French anthem) as soon as he saw me, then gave me a bunch of gossips about the French president Sarkozy. Since I am not following the teledrama, I had no idea of what was going on, but he seemed to be well au courant! I told him I came to get some turnips and one was going to be for him because I was very impressed by his “knowledge”…no matter what, it is still knowledge!

Ingredients for 6 turnips

• 1/2 onion, finely chopped
• 6 medium sized turnips, peeled
• 6-7 medium size mushrooms, finely chopped
• 1 cup cooked spinach, chopped
• 2 garlic cloves, crushed
• 3 tbs Roquefort cheese or Stilton, crumbled
• 2 tbs walnuts, finely chopped
• butter
• 1 tbs olive oil
• salt and pepper

Preparation

After peeling the turnips cut the top and start removing the inside with a small scoop or melon baller. Chop finely and set aside.

Heat olive oil in a pan, brown the onions, then add mushrooms and chopped turnips. Cook for about 5-10 minutes, then add spinach. Add garlic, stir well and cook for a few minutes. Adjust with salt and pepper

In the meantime, cook turnips for about 5-10 minutes in boiling salted water. Drain and remove excess water.

In a mixing bowl, combine mushroom mixture with walnuts, and Roquefort.

Fill in the turnips with mixture. Cook in a 370F pre-heated oven for about 15 minutes. After 15 minutes add a small piece of butter on top of each turnip and let it melt and brown for another 10 minutes.

Serve hot with a salad, as a side dish, or any way you want to enjoy them!