The onset of the cold weather doesn’t need to spell the end of healthy eating. Here, we celebrate our favourite winter vegetables and suggest some new ways of eating them.
Parsnips
Parsnips taste better if harvested after a cold snap as the cold turns their starch to sugar and makes them sweet. They’re at their very best when roasted so their pointed ends go crispy and their middles go soft, either with just oil, salt and pepper or with crushed coriander or cumin seeds too. Roast parsnips are delicious when eaten alone, tossed through dressed salad leaves or pureed into a soup with roast garlic and blue cheese.
Broccoli
A nutritional powerhouse, broccoli can nevertheless be a bit boring when eaten steamed night after night. Instead, try roasting whole florets and drizzling them with a tangy tahini dressing or pureeing them with boiled potatoes and cream for a delicious broccoli soup. Another way to eat broccoli (which is especially good for fussy children) is to make it into a pesto and spoon it over hot cooked pasta.
Shallots
Loved by chefs for their delicate texture and mild flavour, shallots are not commonly used by home cooks. But they are wonderfully versatile and deliciously subtle, in a way that regular old onions are not. One of the nicest ways to cook them is caramelised whole in the oven in butter, sugar, vinegar and salt and pepper, and served on the side of steak or quality sausages. Or, slice them finely and fry them for a crunchy topping for Asian noodles or rice.
Carrots
Carrots are another vegetable that are so readily available we’re become almost blasé about cooking them. But they’re incredibly versatile, and they work with almost any method of preparation. They’re fantastic grated raw with beetroot and plenty of fresh salad herbs, roasted with orange and garlic, or added to slow cooked stews, curries or tagines for a touch of sweetness. Another great way to get carrots in is to juice them – a nice simple combination is rhubarb and spring of fresh mint.
Garlic
Garlic is found in most kitchens and is used in almost any cuisine, but it is hardly ever the star of the show. But when cooked in certain ways it loses its ferocity and becomes quite sweet and mild. For a delicious mellow garlic mash, simmer whole peeled bulbs in milk for at least ten minutes, then strain most of the milk out and puree it with salt, pepper, olive oil and a little sherry vinegar. Otherwise, roast garlic and toss it with potatoes and rosemary or whizz it up with white beans for a tasty dip.