Day 25: Glazed Rutabagas

Today's vegetable recipe: Diced rutabaga (also called 'swedes') boiled, then finished in a glaze of butter, brown sugar, soy sauce and lemon juice. Weight Watchers 1 point.

~ recipe updated & photo added in 2008 ~

2005: Have you had rutabagas before? You'll find them in the produce section along with other root vegetables. They're often cooked like that too, roasted alongside parsnips, potatoes, carrots. This recipe comes from my mother's (and my!) long-time friend, a fellow Home Ec grad and terrific cook. She says she 'loves' these though her family only 'tolerates' them. Me, I'm somewhere in between -- including reminding myself how important it is to taste a new food more than once.

But the real magic here may be the cooking technique, so I'm going to suggest it as another "For Instance" recipe, a basic technique that can be applied to other vegetables. Tonight, for instance ;0), rutabagas, another time carrots or broccoli or green beans.

2008: The glaze is really good. I can see using it with other vegetables, perhaps cauliflower, sweet potatoes, turnip. I can also see substituting honey or maple syrup for the brown sugar. Definitely serve these rutabagas with something earthy and rustic like roast pork.

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VEGETABLE RECIPES from the ARCHIVES
~ more rutabaga recipes ~

FOR INSTANCE II (Butter, Brown Sugar, Soy, Lemon, Worcestershire Glaze)
Tonight, For Instance,
GLAZED RUTABAGAS
Active time: 20 minutes
Time to table: 45 minutes
Serves 4

1 1/4 pounds rutabagas
1 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon butter (reduced from 2 tablespoons)
1 tablespoon brown sugar
2 tablespoons soy sauce
1 tablespoon lemon juice
1 teaspoon Worcestershire sauce
Salt & pepper

Bring water to boil in a medium saucepan over MEDIUM HIGH, then add salt. While bringing water to boil, peel rutabagas with a carrot peeler (2008: this year's rutabaga took no less than a knife to get the tough skins off), then dice or chop. Add rutabagas to boiling water, cover and return water to boil. Reduce heat to MEDIUM and let simmer until soft, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, put remaining ingredients in a small bowl (there's no need to mix them, it's just to save time later, when they're needed). When rutabagas are cooked, drain in a colander. Add butter mixture to hot pan and increase heat to MEDIUM HIGH. Bring to a boil, stirring often. When mixture begins to bubble, add rutabagas. Toss well and continue to stir until sauce moisture evaporates and a glaze forms, about 3 minutes. Season to taste and serve.

Nutrition estimate, per serving: 95 Cal (28% from Fat); 2 g Protein; 3 g Tot Fat; 2 g Sat Fat; 16 g Carb; 4 g Fiber; NetCarb12; 71 mg Calcium; 1 mg Iron; 517 mg Sodium; 8 mg Cholesterol, Weight Watchers 1 point

ALANNA's TIPS

• The smaller the pieces, the shorter the cooking time. Cut pieces of approximately the same size so they need the same cooking time.