Brown Buttered Turnips

One of our favorite, well-worn recipe books is Alice Waters’ The Art of Simple Food, published in 2007 by Clarkson Potter Publishers.   Here is her recipe for turnips.  This is a quote from the book, page 323.

“Turnips have quite a bit of internal moisture and can be cooked without any water at all.  This recipe works well with large or small turnips.  Smaller turnips can be left unpeeled and whole or just cut in half.  Put them in a heavy pan with a big pinch of salt and a large pat of butter.  Cover and cook the turnips until tender over medium heat, stirring every now and then.  If the pan starts to brown, turn down the heat.  Serve them as is, or mash them with a touch of fresh butter.  Turnips can also be sliced and cooked uncovered over higher heat to brown them on purpose; they are delicious caramelized like this.  Keep an eye on them to make sure that they don't brown so much that the flavor becomes bitter.” Top with some sage or thyme and voila!