Friday, April 29, 2011

rutabaga fries

i've never worked with this vegetable before. i had a hard time figuring out the difference between a turnip and rutabaga. in the market, it was marked turnip, when i went to self check out it rang up rutabaga. i'm 85% sure what i bought was a rutabaga. either way it was delicious. i'm confident that you could use either turnip or rutabaga for this recipe and the results would both be good.

1 rutabaga
fat of your choice (coconut oil, olive oil, etc.)
salt & pepper

the hardest part of this recipe is breaking down the root. it can be a little awkard getting it it cut, since it's such a hard root. be careful! i found the easiest way is to first cut it in half. then using a vegetable peeler, peel off the waxy skin. cut off the top and bottom of each half.










next, cut each half into 1/2 inch slices.












cut those slices into "fry shaped" spears. thicker or thinner depending on your preference. some of my fries were super long, so i cut those in half...









place them on a tin foil (or silpat) lined sheet pan. drizzle with fat (i used olive oil) and season with salt and pepper. make sure they are in a single layer and not too crowded. i had to use 2 sheet pans.



before baking

bake the fries for 35-40 minutes in a preheated 400 degree oven, flipping them a couple times during the process.

just flipped... halfway done



ready!!

lots of  leftovers packed for lunch


we served them along side lettuce wrapped burgers.


i will be honest, george was not a fan of these. i think he was ready for a very potato-like fry and that's not what these are. the texture is a little different and they are WAY less starchy. i, on the other hand, LOVED THEM! i think they are a great alternative to traditional fries. i hope you like them just as much...

8 comments:

Alissa @ Not Just Apples said...

that is definitely what i would call a swede/rutabaga, turnips are the smaller ones (although in scotland it's the other way around!)

i love swede fries!

Kerri Heffel said...

oh, thank you so much for clarifying! they are my new favorite!

Whitney said...

Yum, I LOVE rutabaga. I never thought to make them into fries, though. They're a bugger to slice. :)

Definitely will try this recipe, though.

Trixie said...

Yum! How much olive oil..2tbsp?

Kerri Heffel said...

just enough to coat them... 2 or 3 tablespoons would be good.

tina said...

I made this tonight and they were awesome! Definitely going to be a regular in my cooking.

Tiffany Youngren said...

I never would have thought to use rutabagas for fries! Will definitely have to try this!

Thanks

~ Tiffany
Transfer of Health
Healthy Recipes and Wellness Tips

Joanna said...

i'm so happy i found your recipe! these are AMAZING! i added rosemary because i always make french fries with rosemary. just totally awesome. i had never tried rutabaga but it's so tasty.