Parsnip

Can be prepared in 45 minutes or less.

In the following recipe, scalloped potatoes, often soaked with cream and cheese, are combined with parsnips and cooked with broth and low-fat milk instead. Though lighter, they are still delicious.

A simple and satisfying side dish.

Though the truffles lend a wonderfully rich flavor to the shrimp, they are fairly costly, so you might want to save this dish for special occasions.

Thanksgiving timing tip: If you have only one oven, you can prepare this dish ahead and serve it at room temperature, leaving plenty of room in the oven for the turkey.

Gefilte fish is one of those recipes where touch and taste are essential ingredients. A basic recipe goes this way:"You put in this and add that." If you don't want to taste the raw fish, add a bit more seasoning than you normally would. What makes this recipe Galicianer (southern Polish) is the addition of sugar. For some reason the farther south in Poland, the more sugar would be added. A Lithuanian Jew would never sweeten with sugar but might add beets to the stock. I have added ground carrot and parsnip to the fish, something that is done in the Ukraine, because I like the slightly sweet taste and rougher texture. If you want a darker broth, do not peel the onions and leave them whole.

Add a pleasing crunch to this velvety soup by topping it with plain croutons.

A simple stovetop method brings out the best in this earthy root veg.

Creamy, bright green, and vegan, this soup gets its body and sweetness from parsnips. And you don’t even have to peel them.

This salad was inspired by the classic French bistro salad, in which sturdy winter greens are laced with crisp lardons of bacon and a silky poached egg. We’ll never begrudge you a bit of bacon, but here vegetables are roasted to give the salad a leaner form of texture, flavor, and color.

A great way to use up different winter vegetables that you might have around. Feel free to increase the amount of some and eliminate others, depending on your preference, but make sure to cut them into similar sizes so they'll cook in roughly the same amount of time.

We especially like the combination of parsnips, kohlrabi, and celery root in this bacony mash. Prepare the dish a day ahead to allow the flavors to meld (and save time on Thanksgiving Day).