Turnips with Whipped Pistachio Feta

White turnips are mild, slightly sweet and delicious both cooked and raw. Here, they are sauteed until tender, tossed with a miso butter sauce and spread atop a whipped pistachio feta for a show-stopping dish that really highlights the season’s bounty.

Serves 2-4
Recipe adapted from cooking.nytimes.com

Ingredients

For Turnips

• 2 bunches hakurei (Japanese) turnips (about 1 pound), tops reserved and turnips cut into quarters (or smaller ones in half)
• Extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and black pepper
• 1 garlic clove, finely chopped or 1 rehydrated Maranatha Farm Garlic Coin
• 1 Tablespoon unsalted butter
• 1 Tablespoon white miso paste
• 2-3 large handfuls salad greens, such as reserved turnip tops, baby spinach or arugula
• Handful chopped fresh parsley
• Handful roughly chopped toasted pistachios

For Whipped Pistachio Feta

• 7 ounces vegan or dairy feta, broken into large chunks (about 1 ½ cups)
• 1/3 cup roasted pistachios
• 1 garlic clove, roughly chopped or 1 rehydrated Maranatha Farm Garlic Coin
• ½ cup roughly chopped fresh parsley leaves
• 2 Tablespoons fresh lemon juice
• 2 Tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

Method

1. Heat a large skillet over medium-high until hot. Add a drizzle of olive oil along with the turnips. Season with salt and a big pinch of black pepper. Toss for 2 minutes, then reduce the heat to medium and cook, tossing, until the turnips are golden and tender, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the garlic, butter and miso, and toss until the butter has melted and the miso has dissolved, 1 to 2 minutes.
2. Make the whipped pistachio feta: In a small blender or food processor, place the feta, pistachios, garlic, parsley, lemon juice, olive oil and 3 tablespoons water. Blend until smooth. Depending on the size of your blender, you may need an extra tablespoon or so of water to get the blender going. Taste and season with a little salt if needed (though it should be salty enough) and some black pepper.
3. Place the salad leaves, parsley and turnips in a large bowl and toss to combine. To serve, spread 2 to 3 large spoonfuls of the whipped pistachio feta on a large platter or plate and top with the salad leaves and turnips. Spoon a few extra dollops of the whipped feta on top and drizzle with olive oil. Taste and season with salt and pepper if needed and finish with chopped pistachios. (This recipe makes a substantial quantity of whipped pistachio feta. Feel free to double the turnip portion of the recipe or use any leftovers to fold through pasta, using some pasta cooking water to loosen it up. The whipped feta will keep in the fridge in an airtight container for up to 5 days.)