About a year ago, I made my famous beef stew for my husband—its always his favorite meal and a joy for me to make for him. I laughed inside when he exclaimed, “Those potatoes were amazing!” About a week later, I reveled to him that the “potatoes” he thought were so great were actually parsnips. Anyways, needless to say I have been roasting parsnips in all shapes with a variety of spices ever since.  This buttery root vegetable looks like a white carrot.

This creamy root vegetable mash is a healthy, low carb alternative to white potatoes. Parsnips are a delicious, comfort food especially if cold winter weather is surrounding you right now. As I always say, the best foods always involve lots of butter, garlic and cheese! Yes, butter is quite healthy for you—your heart, weight, and most importantly, your taste buds! If you are skeptical of eating butter, check out this great article that will quickly change your mind. I paired this with chicken apple sausage and dijon mustard and the combined flavors of the entire dish was absolutely scrumptious!

Nutrition of Parsnips— 

Parsnips are root vegetables that looks like a white carrot. Root vegetables such as parsnips, rutabaga, beets, sweet potatoes, yams, carrots or turnips are a healthy source of carbohydrates. They are slow burning carbohydrates, meaning that the glucose slowly enters your blood stream and does not spike your sugar levels. 

Parsnips and other root vegetables are packed with fiber, folic acid, Vitamins A & C and phytonutrients such as beta carotene and kaempherol and quercetin. Interestingly, kaempherol and quercetin act synergistically when together to help prevent the formation of cancer cells—and both nutrients are found in parsnips! These phytonutrients also protect against oxidative damage to our cells.

Parsnips have a nutty, sweet taste to them so I think they go fabulously with a creamy goat cheese. Like with any carbohydrate or starch it is important to eat these foods with a good quality source of fat—I chose butter and goat cheese—goat milk is easier to digest, especially if lactose tends to bother you.

At first glance, there may seem like a lot of steps involved in making this, but it actually is a quick dinner once you get started. This dish is bursting with a broad range of flavors and best served piping hot!

Happy cooking and enjoy!

Roasted Parsnip Mash with Caramelized Onions and Goat Cheese

A buttery, root vegetable mash with caramelized onions and creamy goat cheese. A low carb, healthy alternative to mashed potatoes.

feeds about 4 people

Ingredients

Roasted Parsnips

• 2 pounds parsnips, pealed and cubed
• 2 tbsp butter or olive oil
• 1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt
• 1/4 tsp paprika
• generous amount of fresh cracked pepper

Caramelized Onions and Kale

• 1 sweet white onion
• 2 cups kale, deveined and chopped
• 2 tbsp olive oil

Roasted Parsnip Mash

• Roasted parsnips + caramelized onions & kale
• 1 1/2 cup chicken broth, preferably homemade
• 4 cloves garlic
• 4 oz soft goat cheese
• 6 tbsp butter
• 2 tbsp dijon mustard
• 1/2 tsp Celtic sea salt

{Serve with chicken, beef, or pork sausages—I used US Wellness chicken apple sausages}.

Directions

• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F. Rinse the parsnips. Use a peeler to peal off skins. Chop parsnips into 1-2 inch cubes. Arrange on a large baking sheet. Sprinkle with salt, paprika and pepper. Chop butter into small chunks on top of parsnips.
• Roast for 50-55 minutes, flipping and stirring half-way through.
• While the parsnips are roasting, slice onions into thin strips. De-vein kale and chop leaves into small pieces.
• In a large skillet, add onions, crushed garlic and olive oil.  Over low-medium heat, caramelize onions for 20 minutes, stirring occasionally.  {Onions should be soft when caramelized}.  Add in kale and continue to sauté and stir for 5 minutes.  Scoop mixture onto a plate and set aside.
• Heat the same skillet to medium.  Brown and sauté sausage links for 20 minutes or until all sides are golden brown and completely cooked.
• Once parsnips are cooked, add parsnips, chicken broth, garlic, goat cheese, butter, mustard and salt to a blender or to a large bowl and use an immersion blender. Blend until a thick, yet creamy mixture has formed.  Add to serving bowl and fold in caramelized onions and kale.
• Serve parsnip mash with sausage links and a side of dijon mustard if desired.

This & That

• I chose to slow roast the parsnips in butter at a low temperature. This helps them stay soft for pureeing.
• The puree is pretty thick to resemble the texture of mashed potatoes—you can adjust the amount of chicken broth based off your preferences.
• I use these uncooked chicken sausages, but if you are using pre-cooked sausages you will need to adjust the cooking time.