Turnips and S'Mores

I have a new passion – turnips. I didn’t just fall off the turnip truck. I have discovered that turnips are Da Bomb, though. They taste yummy and have lots of nutritional value.

My brother bought some turnips and fixed them for lunch yesterday, along with the sushi. He just boiled them until soft and added salt and butter. I tasted a bite. Tasted like a fibrous potato. Very tasty. Since I love all things squash-like, I am sure it’s no surprise that I decided I liked turnips. [I don’t like turnip greens, though. Ick.]

 

 

I remembered reading a recipe on Pioneer Woman’s site for Turnip Gratin some time back. I made it tonight. I didn’t use gruyere, though; too expensive. I used shaved parmesan, Asiago, and a mixture of Colby and chaddar. I cooked the turnips ahead, sliced them into a dish and layered the cream, garlic, and cheeses, and baked. It also called for chicken broth, and I put too much. Alesia liked it. Mike didn’t. Not all the turnips got cooked soft. I thought it had a nice flavor. Mother said it was good. There’s enough left to eat it again tomorrow, and I can bake it some more until hopefully all the turnips are soft. I am glad to find a new vegetable and a new recipe. I just have to work on cooking it. 

 

We’ve had a really quiet day. Our major activity was to go grocery shopping. We also got some laundry done.

 

After dinner, Mike made s’mores. I wouldn’t let him make them until Bruce was here to show him how to light the gas logs. He toasted marshmallows until they were black smoking chunks. Alesia and I couldn’t believe he ate those. He said just before bed he was feeling nauseated. I had no sympathy. None. Live and learn.

 

I did some Christmas shopping online this morning. I have pretty much finished what I am getting the kids. There won’t be a lot of gifts, but what I bought are things of lasting quality, I hope. I found Alesia some beautiful emerald earrings, deeply discounted of course. She loves all things green. Mike is getting his tennis racquet and a Nintendo game he wants. Mother and Bruce haven’t done their shopping yet and they are always generous, so I am not worried the kids won’t have a good Christmas. I am trying to keep things low-key, though.

 

We found several small gifts at Kroger to send to Miss Jean, Mother’s friend in Asheville who is almost 90. She has no family other than us, and we want her to have a happy Christmas. Her gift, and the gifts for my sponsored kids in Kazakhstan will be the most challenging. I like selecting them, though. I like knowing someone is going to have a happy Christmas instead of a sad one, because of my efforts. It reminds me of all the hard work my dad did for the Salvation Army for so many years. [That’s a very worthy organization, BTW, if you’re thinking of charitable giving…]

 

Back to the grind tomorrow…