Natural Cook Studio of Bend

What’s shaped like a carrot, looks like a carrot, and cooks up like a carrot, but isn’t orange and doesn’t taste like a carrot? It the pale cousin, the Parsnip!

While not nearly as popular as its cousins, parsnips used to be quite popular with the masses. Parsnips were made into wine and jam in 16^th century Germany, as well as dried and ground into a type of flour for sweet cakes.

Popular or not their nutritional profile is quite attractive. Parsnips are a good sources of folate, fiber, and phenolic acids.

Phenolic acids are strong antioxidants and might prevent oxidative damage to biomolecules such as DNA, lipids and proteins which play a role in chronic diseases such as cancer and cardiovascular disease and more. Plant phenols may interfere with all stages of the cancer process, potentially resulting in a reduction of cancer risk.

Dietary fiber is on the top of all healing substances and parsnips are an excellent source. A little more than half of the fiber in parsnips is the soluble kind, which means that it becomes gel-like in the digestive system. This helps block the intestine from absorbing fats and cholesterol from foods. At the same time, it dilutes bile acids in the intestine, which can prevent them from causing cancer.

Folate gets its name from the Latin word folium (”leaf”) .Getting enough folate has been shown to prevent certain birth defects, so it is a very important nutrient if you’re pregnant or planning to be. It’s also strongly suspected of reducing the risk of stroke. Folate decreases blood levels of homocysteine, a chemical that may jam the arteries and stop blood flow. Folic acid targets large artery stiffness and may prevent isolated systolic hypertension.

When shopping for Parsnips look for the smaller ones. When they get large they start to taste woody. Parsnips are rarely eaten raw and usually found in stew like dishes, which make them a perfect winter vegetable. They get sweeter the longer they are cooked and create a wonderful carmelization when cooked slow and low. Try adding them to your next vegetable soup.

In Health,

Lisa