Oh Thanksgiving! Or as I like to call it, casserole season!
Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for many reasons. It’s the first of the major family holidays I grew up celebrating. It’s paired with a long holiday weekend. And it’s filled with so many bites {and I love bites}.
I’ve never been a huge turkey eater. But I’m also extremely attached to the way my family did Thanksgiving, especially now that I don’t make the trip back to Florida anymore. So that means, I always cook a turkey. And it also means that I cook very similar sides that are made from real food ingredients. While not everyone in my family is on the healthy eating train, everyone is headstrong about cooking with real butter, real milk, real cheese, and fresh vegetables.
And because, all year long, I’m a fan of sneaking vegetables into ordinary dishes, I created a whole food, sneaky veggie casserole that’ll leave you feeling totally satisfied this casserole season: Scalloped Potatoes & Turnips with Gruyere {scroll down for recipe}.
If you’re new to cooking with turnips, there are a few things you should know. Most importantly, turnips are different than potatoes nutritionally. Turnips contain over three times as much Vitamin C, one third as many calories, and one third as many carbohydrates as white potatoes. Texturally, they aren’t as soft as potatoes, which can be great in certain recipes because they don’t fall apart. And flavor wise, they get a little sweetness when cooked. Ultimately, I don’t recommend completely swapping potatoes for turnips unless you’re a seasoned turnip lover. But I completely recommend swapping portions of potato recipes to increase the spectrum of vitamins you’re consuming as well as lower the calories and carbohydrates of your dish without sacrificing the use of real butter, real milk, and real cheese.
I was able to purchase all of the ingredients for this recipe at the new Whole Foods Market 365 store in Cedar Park, which is a huge plus especially during the busy holiday shopping season. I get super frustrated when I have to go to a separate store to find items and it was a huge relief to see that turnips and chives were both available in the Whole Foods Market 365 produce department.
The prices at Whole Foods Market 365 were also noticeably cheaper. I was able to purchase every ingredient for this recipe, and mostly organic products, for $20.80. Had there already been flour in my pantry and milk in my refrigerator, the I would have only spent $15.42, which is quite the steal for a casserole made with quality ingredients.
And lastly, I really loved the feel of the Whole Foods Market 365 store. It was clean and orderly beyond belief. The produce department was top notch. For almost every grocery item I purchased, there was a store brand available. And!! Oh, and this is the best part. The Whole Foods Market 365 store in Cedar Park collaborates with local companies like Juiceland {cold pressed juice to order}, Easy Tiger {freshly baked breads}, and Snap Kitchen {healthy eats to go}. Overall, shopping at this store was as pleasant as it gets. I’ll definitely be making the trip to the Whole Foods Market 365 Cedar Park store {20 minute drive} as often as I can to load up on 365 products.
Scalloped Potatoes & Turnips With Gruyere
By Published: November 15, 2017
Oh Thanksgiving! Or as I like to call it, casserole season! Thanksgiving is my favorite holiday for many reasons. It's the first of …
Ingredients
- 1 white onion peeled and thinly sliced
- 2 tablespoons butter
- 2 russet potatoes peeled and sliced
- 2 turnips peeled and sliced
- 4 tablespoons butter
- 4 tablespoons all purpose flour
- 3 cups whole milk
- 6 ounces gruyere cheese shredded
- salt to taste
- black pepper to taste
- cayenne pepper to taste
- fresh chives chopped for garnish
Instructions
- Spread 1/4 of the milk mixture on the bottom of an 8x12 casserole dish.
- While the onions are cooking, peel and slice potatoes and turnips .
- Scald milk.
- In a small saucepan, melt butter over medium heat.
- Add flour to butter, reduce heat to medium-low, and stir rapidly with a whisk for about 3 minutes.
- Slowly pour scalded milk into the butter and flour mixture while whisking.
- Increase heat to high and continue stirring until mixture begins to boil.
- Reduce heat to low and continue stirring for another minute until mixture is thick and creamy.
- Remove from heat and season with salt, black pepper, and cayenne. It's good for the mixture to be a little on the salty side because this sauce will be the seasoning for the potatoes and turnips too. Remember it's always easier to add more seasoning than add less!
- Place 1/2 sliced potatoes, slightly overlapping, along the bottom of the casserole dish.
- Spread 1/2 of the onions over the potatoes.
- Place remaining 1/2 of sliced potatoes, slightly overlapping, along the bottom of the casserole dish.
- Sprinkle 1/3 of the gruyere over the onions.
- Place sliced turnips, slightly overlapping, over the gruyere.
- Spread remaining 1/2 of the onions over the turnips.
- Sprinkle 1/3 of the gruyere over the onions.
- Spread remaining 1/4 of the milk mixture over the onions.
- Sprinkle remaining 1/3 of the gruyere over the onions.
- Place on middle rack of the oven and bake for 50 to 55 minutes, until cheese is browned.
- Let rest for 10 minutes.
- Garnish with chopped chives and serve.
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