CSA Share Ninja Rescue: beets, turnips and fava beans

photo courtesy of Leroy Marylene via the stock.xchng

I think Monday will be the official post day for the CSA Share Ninja Rescue feature, where you tell me what items in your CSA share are making you scratch your head or lose your patience and I provide you with some help in the form of recipes or ideas.

Commenters from last week have asked for recipe ideas for beets, turnips and fava beans.

Beets
Think outside the (CSA) box with beets -- lighter color beets are just as flavorful and easier to work with, as they don't stain your hands! And if you get green leafy tops with your beets, substitute them for other greens in salads.

• Beets, apples and ginger with clemetine vinaigrette from Amanda Hesser by way of the Ninj: oranges or tangerines would be fine substitutes for clementines
• Roasted beet and butternut squash soup from Dinner with Julie: amazingly flavorful and a gorgeous color to boot!

Turnips
Try substituting turnips for any recipe that calls for other root vegetables such as carrots or parsnips.

• Smashed turnips and rutabagas with cheese from Southern Living: you could lighten this a bit by using a little less butter and milk instead of cream
• Roasted baby vegetables from Bon Appetit: Bonus -- this one uses turnips AND beets!

Fava Beans
I can't claim a lot of familiarity with favas but plan on trying each of the recipes below - yum!

• Pasta with fava beans, mushrooms and mascarpone from Cooking Light: use regular button mushrooms in place of the dried to save time
• Fava bean dip from Cooking Light: the recipe recommends fava beans but limas can be used as well

Be sure to post a comment below or send an email to kitninja (at) gmail (dot) com to let me know how you enjoyed last week's recipes and what you need help with next week!