Just read an article in the Financial Times about parsley roots
as an ingredient, I never thought of using them before.
Any information welcome.
--
Mike Reid
Walk-eat-UK "http://www.fellwalk.co.uk" <-- you can email us@ this site
Walk-eat-Spain "http://www.fell-walker.co.uk" <-- dontuse@ all, it's a spamtrap
Photos of both "http://www.lawn-mower-man.co.uk"

The Reid wrote:
> Just read an article in the Financial Times about parsley roots
> as an ingredient, I never thought of using them before.
> Any information welcome.

Think celery-flavored parsnip.

Bubba

--
You wanna measure or you wanna cook?

The Reid > wrote:

> Just read an article in the Financial Times about parsley roots
> as an ingredient, I never thought of using them before.
> Any information welcome.

Parsley roots are very widely used in Europe and I thought UK was not
excluded. In taste, they are in between parsnips and celeriacs, but
closer to the former, being a just a bit less sweet and more "spicier",
with some celery - and of course parsley - overtones. They can be and
are used much the same way as either of those vegetables, e.g. in
savoury soups, stocks and stews, as well as a purée, either by itself,
mixed with some other ingredient(s), or added to creamed soups. They
can even be a major component of a soup. Richard Olney recommended
that, if possible, they be included in all bouquets garnis. They can
also be boiled and then glazed, using either sugar or honey.

Here is a parsley root soup recipe that comes from an unknown source.

500 g (1.1 pounds) parsley root(s)
3 tablespoons onions, finely minced
0.1 l (0.4 cup) dry white wine
1 l (1 quart) beef or vegetable stock
3/4 l (3.2 cups) cream
1 tablespoon crème fraîche
freshly-pressed lemon juice
salt and freshly ground black pepper

Peel the parsley root and cut in slices. Fry it together with the
onions in a bit of hot butter until the onions take up some colour. Add
the wine and let it reduce to half or even less. Pour in the stock and
the cream and simmer slowly for 30 minutes. Purée with/in a (stick)
blender and pass through a sieve. Add freshly-pressed lemon juice,
crème fraîche, and salt and pepper to taste, whip up the soup with the
stick blender until foamy and serve at once.

Victor

Victor Sack wrote:
> The Reid > wrote:
>
> > Just read an article in the Financial Times about parsley roots
> > as an ingredient, I never thought of using them before.
> > Any information welcome.
>
> Parsley roots are very widely used in Europe and I thought UK was not
> excluded. In taste, they are in between parsnips and celeriacs, but
> closer to the former, being a just a bit less sweet and more "spicier",
> with some celery - and of course parsley - overtones. They can be and
> are used much the same way as either of those vegetables, e.g. in
> savoury soups, stocks and stews, as well as a purée, either by itself,
> mixed with some other ingredient(s), or added to creamed soups. They
> can even be a major component of a soup. Richard Olney recommended
> that, if possible, they be included in all bouquets garnis. They can
> also be boiled and then glazed, using either sugar or honey.

I seem to remember that when I was a kid growing up in NYC (40 years
ago) they were a standard component of "soup greens." My mother and mt
Aunt Gracie ALWAYS used them when making hcicken soup. I dont remember
them being used for anything else. This was in the MYC Jewish
community, so YMMV. Forty years later in Chicago I can still find them
occasionally, but not regularly, and I dont think I ever see already
bundled "soup greens."

-bwg
"Wow! Brazil is big."
G.W. Bush
(<http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/chronicle/archive/2005/11/07/MNG5KFK79J1.DTL>)

> wrote:

> I seem to remember that when I was a kid growing up in NYC (40 years
> ago) they were a standard component of "soup greens." My mother and mt
> Aunt Gracie ALWAYS used them when making hcicken soup. I dont remember
> them being used for anything else. This was in the MYC Jewish
> community, so YMMV. Forty years later in Chicago I can still find them
> occasionally, but not regularly, and I dont think I ever see already
> bundled "soup greens."

They are still a part of "soup greens" here in Germany, though sometimes
they are replaced by celery roots.

Victor

wrote:
> Victor Sack wrote:
> > The Reid > wrote:
> >
> > > Just read an article in the Financial Times about parsley roots
> > > as an ingredient, I never thought of using them before.
> > > Any information welcome.
> >
> > Parsley roots are very widely used in Europe and I thought UK was not
> > excluded. In taste, they are in between parsnips and celeriacs, but
> > closer to the former, being a just a bit less sweet and more "spicier",
> > with some celery - and of course parsley - overtones. They can be and
> > are used much the same way as either of those vegetables, e.g. in
> > savoury soups, stocks and stews, as well as a purée, either by itself,
> > mixed with some other ingredient(s), or added to creamed soups. They
> > can even be a major component of a soup. Richard Olney recommended
> > that, if possible, they be included in all bouquets garnis. They can
> > also be boiled and then glazed, using either sugar or honey.
>
> I seem to remember that when I was a kid growing up in NYC (40 years
> ago) they were a standard component of "soup greens." My mother and mt
> Aunt Gracie ALWAYS used them when making hcicken soup. I dont remember
> them being used for anything else. This was in the MYC Jewish
> community, so YMMV. Forty years later in Chicago I can still find them
> occasionally, but not regularly, and I dont think I ever see already
> bundled "soup greens."

Forty years ago in NYC soup greens were free to regular customers, and
yes, there was usually a parsley root in amongst the parsley
leaves/stems, celery ribs, carrots, turnip, parsnip, and sometimes a
small potato, everything a bit limp but nowhere ready for compost.
Parsley is a biennial, it will send up leaves the second year but they
will be sparse and bitter. It's best to dig up the roots during their
first winter and use them in stock, etc. and then plant new in the
spring. I have about a dozen not ten paces from my back door, I'll be
digging/prying them up during winter... you really can't make Jewish
Penicillin without parsley root and parsnip.

Forty years ago there were but a handful of stupidmarkets in NYC, and
they were tiny, naturally no parking lot, usually three rather short
aisles, and many had no shopping carts, a clerk would literally run to
pick stuff off the shelves from your list and bring them up to the
register... early on the register receipt was a brown paper bag,
notated by a clerk who knew the price of every item in the store, who
could actually do math with a pencil. But it took a long time before
people accepted the newbie stupidmarkets and so still shopped mostly at
the stand alone stores. And everyone had their favorite greengrocer,
where a regular custormer not only got soup greens for free but all
sorts of other produce too, like beet tops, wilted mushrooms and okra,
and of course iffn yer mudder shopped there ya could swipe a few mickys
without da fuzz coming down on ya. Now someone is going to ask what's
a micky. hehe

Sheldon

In article >,
(Victor Sack) wrote:

> > wrote:
>
> > I seem to remember that when I was a kid growing up in NYC (40 years
> > ago) they were a standard component of "soup greens." My mother and mt
> > Aunt Gracie ALWAYS used them when making hcicken soup. I dont remember
> > them being used for anything else. This was in the MYC Jewish
> > community, so YMMV. Forty years later in Chicago I can still find them
> > occasionally, but not regularly, and I dont think I ever see already
> > bundled "soup greens."
>
> They are still a part of "soup greens" here in Germany, though sometimes
> they are replaced by celery roots.
>
> Victor

OK, Bubba dahling, 'splain me what parsley and celery roots look like.
Why would someone want both parsley root and parsnip in soup - are they
not the same taste? I like celery tops in my soup; what's the celery
root taste like? (Celery, I know.) :-P
--
http://www.jamlady.eboard.com, updated 11-9-05 finishing in four
parts the trip report from our vacation time in San Francisco
for Nephew Pat's wedding last weekend.

Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> 'splain me what parsley and celery roots look like.

Think ugli.

> Why would someone want both parsley root and parsnip in soup - are they
> not the same taste?

Same exact reason folks want both onion and garlic, and parsley and
thyme too in the same dish, similar but different, and they complement
each other. Knowing what ingredients complement each other is an
important element of that which separates the cooks from the hash
slingers.

> I like celery tops in my soup; what's the celery
> root taste like? (Celery, I know.)

Well, not exactly... celery root is milder than celery leaves... you
really need to try it yourself, it's nice sliced into a gratin of
scalloped spuds and ham

celeriac [seh-LER-ay-ak]
This rather ugly, knobby, brown vegetable is actually the root of a
special celery cultivated specifically for its root. It's also called
celery root and celery knob . Celeriac tastes like a cross between a
strong celery and parsley. It's available from September through May
and can range anywhere from the size of an apple to that of a small
cantaloupe. Choose a relatively small, firm celeriac with a minimum of
rootlets and knobs. Avoid those with soft spots, which signal decay.
The inedible green leaves are usually detached by the time you buy
celeriac. Refrigerate the root in a plastic bag for 7 to 10 days.
Celeriac can be eaten raw or cooked. Before using, peel and soak
briefly in acidulated water to prevent discoloration. To eat raw, grate
or shred celeriac and use in salads. Cooked, it's wonderful in soups,
stews and purees. It can also be boiled, braised, sautéed and baked.
Celeriac contains small amounts of vitamin B, calcium and iron.

© Copyright Barron's Educational Services, Inc. 1995 based on THE FOOD
LOVER'S COMPANION, 2nd edition, by Sharon Tyler Herbst.

Sheldon

Melba's Jammin' wrote:
> In article >,
> (Victor Sack) wrote:
>
>
> wrote:
>>
>>
>>>I seem to remember that when I was a kid growing up in NYC (40 years
>>>ago) they were a standard component of "soup greens." My mother and mt
>>>Aunt Gracie ALWAYS used them when making hcicken soup. I dont remember
>>>them being used for anything else. This was in the MYC Jewish
>>>community, so YMMV. Forty years later in Chicago I can still find them
>>>occasionally, but not regularly, and I dont think I ever see already
>>>bundled "soup greens."
>>
>>They are still a part of "soup greens" here in Germany, though sometimes
>>they are replaced by celery roots.
>>
>>Victor
>
>
> OK, Bubba dahling, 'splain me what parsley and celery roots look like.
> Why would someone want both parsley root and parsnip in soup - are they
> not the same taste? I like celery tops in my soup; what's the celery
> root taste like? (Celery, I know.) :-P

Celery root tastes like parsley root, only more so. I use both in
soup. Erich loved to eat both in chicken soup, just as he would
carrots, when they were done. Now I throw them away when the broth is
finished. I have never been able to figure out whether parsnip and
parsley root are the same. They sure look, taste and act as if they were.

Next time you come here, I will take you to a restaurant that serves
Celery Root Salad. It is delicious. Or buy some at Citarella's, but
they do not have it every day. I once made the one from Bubba's
recipe and my guests thought it was delicious. You need a Moulinex or
whatever these graters are called, but I only have the four-sided hand
grater and used the side on which I grate potatoes for latkes.

The kind of parsley grown for big, vegetable-like roots I call Hamburg
parsley or turnip-rooted parsley. I grow potatoes fine, but carrots and
these babies were runts. I think my soil is tired.

If you can find it even dried, it is delicious in soups. I love the
fresh in mashed patatoes.

It is a treat I rarely get my paws on, and often day dream about eating.
I think my very remote ancestors probably ate them.
blacksalt

Melba's Jammin' > wrote:

> (Victor Sack) wrote:
> >
> > They are still a part of "soup greens" here in Germany, though sometimes
> > they are replaced by celery roots.
>
> OK, Bubba dahling, 'splain me what parsley and celery roots look like.

Parsley roots look similar to parsnips, but shorther and with the thick
end even thicker. Celery roots look somewhat like knobbly, pimply
potatoes. Here are the pictures:

Parsley root
<http://www.pharmamed.ru/pictures/i_250_32.jpg>

Celery root (celeriac)
<http://www.melissas.com/images/products/227a.jpg>

> Why would someone want both parsley root and parsnip in soup - are they
> not the same taste?

Nope. I have tried to describe their taste upthread... look it up.

> I like celery tops in my soup; what's the celery
> root taste like? (Celery, I know.) :-P

Celery roots (celeriac) have a definite celery taste and also somewhat
lemony overtones. When used to make various non-soup meat dishes, there
is very little difference in the end result whether one uses celery
roots or stalks.

And here is what I posted a year or two ago...
Very often, celery roots are added to stocks, broths and soups as a
minor component. This is not such a hot idea, as far as I'm concerned,
because both their taste and aroma seem to largely disappear during the
cooking, not even imparting all that much to the dish, leaving only the
now mushy root to discard. It is much different with soups where they
are a major component, but even then I'd personally prefer to use the
leaf/stalk type of celery, unless perhaps it's a puréed soup where the
puréed texture of specifically celery root is important and where they
are not cooked, if at all, quite as long.

This is even more different with vegetable purées with celery root
dominating - they can be sublime. Below is an example (which, BTW, is a
low-calorie recipe, so feel free to substitute whole milk for the
skimmed milk powder and water if you want; also notice that the parsley
is the leaf variety) from Michel Guérard's _Cuisine Minceur_. One can
also mix the purée with mashed potatoes.

Otherwise, celery roots are best consumed raw, as, for example, in the
classic example of céleri remoulade. I once posted a recipe from
_Bistro Cooking_ by Patricia Wells.

Victor

Celeriac and Parsley Purée
Purée-mousse de céleri-rave au persil

For four people

_________________________________________________
Main 500 g (1 lb 2 oz) celeriac
ingredients 100 g (3 1/2 oz) parsley
1 litre (1 3/4 pints) water
100 g (3 1/2 oz) skimmed milk
salt, pepper

_________________________________________________
Equipment 1 heavy-based saucepan
1 wooden spoon or spatula
1 liquidiser

_________________________________________________

1. Peel the celeriac and cut into chunks. Blanch for two minutes in
boiling salted water to eliminate any bitterness and drain.

2. Stir the skimmed milk powder into the cold water in the heavy-based
pan. Season with salt and pepper, bring to the boil, add the celeriac
and simmer for thirty minutes. Stir from time to time with a wooden
spoon or spatula to prevent it from sticking.

3. Remove the stalks from the parsley. was and dry it, and ten minutes
before the end of the cooking time, add to the pan with the celeriac.

4. Strain off the liquid or lift out the parsley and celeriac with a
skimmer and blend them in a liquidiser, adding just enough of the
cooking liquid to give the purée a light mousse-like consistency. Taste
for seasoning. Either keep the purée hot in a bain-marie ready to
serve, or store it in the refrigerator until needed.

Sheldon wrote:
> Forty years ago there were but a handful of stupidmarkets in NYC, and
> they were tiny, naturally no parking lot, usually three rather short
> aisles, and many had no shopping carts, a clerk would literally run to
> pick stuff off the shelves from your list and bring them up to the
> register... early on the register receipt was a brown paper bag,
> notated by a clerk who knew the price of every item in the store, who
> could actually do math with a pencil. But it took a long time before

The supermarket chains I remember are A&P. Daitsch (sp?) & Olinsky. A&P
sold this exotic coffee -- Bustello whole bean that you ground in the
store. My mother never bought it. Daitch was known for its dairy
products and lox/smoked white fish etc. I forget Olinsky. My friend
Joel B's father owned a few too, but I forget their name. These were
all large enough that you couldn't hand or call in a shopping list and
have the clerk pick and pack your order, but the smaller groceries
(like Sam's on the corner of Sheridan Ave and 164th St (?)) would. They
alse had barrrels of pickles at the counter. I always had to have one.
I think they were 7 or 8 cents each. There were larger chains like
"Stop and Shop" in the "shopping centers" in the suburbs near my Aunt
Gracie. During my teens the revolution began: a chain of then "big box"
supermarkets named Pathmark opened and stayed open 24 hrs/day.

> without da fuzz coming down on ya. Now someone is going to ask what's
> a micky. hehe
>

What's a micky?

> Sheldon

-bwg
"[T]he mother of all the absurdities sits on the rocking chair nodding
at the sight of a deja vu of another intifada on the way, clucking
tongues against dry palates."
--Gideon Samet (Haaretz, Nov 9, 2005)

wrote:
> Sheldon wrote:
> > Forty years ago there were but a handful of stupidmarkets in NYC, and
> > they were tiny, naturally no parking lot, usually three rather short
> > aisles, and many had no shopping carts, a clerk would literally run to
> > pick stuff off the shelves from your list and bring them up to the
> > register... early on the register receipt was a brown paper bag,
> > notated by a clerk who knew the price of every item in the store, who
> > could actually do math with a pencil. But it took a long time before
>
> The supermarket chains I remember are A&P. Daitsch (sp?) & Olinsky. A&P
> sold this exotic coffee -- Bustello whole bean that you ground in the
> store. My mother never bought it. Daitch was known for its dairy
> products and lox/smoked white fish etc. I forget Olinsky. My friend
> Joel B's father owned a few too, but I forget their name. These were
> all large enough that you couldn't hand or call in a shopping list and
> have the clerk pick and pack your order, but the smaller groceries
> (like Sam's on the corner of Sheridan Ave and 164th St (?)) would. They
> alse had barrrels of pickles at the counter. I always had to have one.
> I think they were 7 or 8 cents each. There were larger chains like
> "Stop and Shop" in the "shopping centers" in the suburbs near my Aunt
> Gracie. During my teens the revolution began: a chain of then "big box"
> supermarkets named Pathmark opened and stayed open 24 hrs/day.
>
> > without da fuzz coming down on ya. Now someone is going to ask what's
> > a micky. hehe
> >
>
> What's a micky?

I think if you search back further you'll find a much more elaborate
explanation.

Meriam Webster
mick
noun
: often capitalizedEtymology: Mick, nickname for Michael, common Irish
given name often offensive : IRISHMAN
---

Newsgroups: rec.food.cooking
From: (PENMART10) Date: 1999/04/20
Subject: REQ: Baked Potatos...how to -- correction


(Bob Y.) writes:
>Actually you shouldn't wrap a potato in aluminum foil even in the oven.
>Instead of getting nice fluffy insides and a crisp skin (pass the butter, salt and
>pepper), you get a soggy, insipid steamed potato. If that's what you want,
>you can probably get it faster using a steamer on top of the stove.
>If I'm in a hurry, I'll microwave it and then transfer to the oven to finish it.

Actually, the best baked potatoes are "Mickys" - *stolen* potatoes -
wrapped
in layers of newspaper and tossed directly into an open fire built in a
vacant
city lot... not many girls have ever tasted a "Micky", save those eager
to
trade something of consummate value to certain incorrigible young
hooligans.
<G>

Sheldon
````````````
On a recent Night Court rerun, Judge Harry Stone had a wonderful line:
"I try to keep an open mind, but not so open that my brains fall out."
----

Sheldon

wrote:
> Sheldon wrote:
>
>>Forty years ago there were but a handful of stupidmarkets in NYC, and
>>they were tiny, naturally no parking lot, usually three rather short
>>aisles, and many had no shopping carts, a clerk would literally run to
>>pick stuff off the shelves from your list and bring them up to the
>>register... early on the register receipt was a brown paper bag,
>>notated by a clerk who knew the price of every item in the store, who
>>could actually do math with a pencil. But it took a long time before
>
>
> The supermarket chains I remember are A&P. Daitsch (sp?) & Olinsky. A&P
> sold this exotic coffee -- Bustello whole bean that you ground in the
> store. My mother never bought it. Daitch was known for its dairy
> products and lox/smoked white fish etc. I forget Olinsky. My friend
> Joel B's father owned a few too, but I forget their name. These were
> all large enough that you couldn't hand or call in a shopping list and
> have the clerk pick and pack your order, but the smaller groceries
> (like Sam's on the corner of Sheridan Ave and 164th St (?)) would. They
> alse had barrrels of pickles at the counter. I always had to have one.
> I think they were 7 or 8 cents each. There were larger chains like
> "Stop and Shop" in the "shopping centers" in the suburbs near my Aunt
> Gracie. During my teens the revolution began: a chain of then "big box"
> supermarkets named Pathmark opened and stayed open 24 hrs/day.
>

Some years before you, I shopped at the Daitch on 167th Street, East
of Jerome Avenue and at the A & P around the corner, on River Avenue,
right under the elevated subway. The pickles you bought were a nickel
and the sign on the barrel said "A Nickel A Pickle", just as it did in
dozens of other stores. On the counter of each Kosher Deli, there was
a small platter with pieces of a thin salami-like sausage and the sign
next to it said "A Nickel A Stickel", stickel meaning "piece".

Remember the different cream cheeses at Daitch, all in wooden boxes
and when a box became empty, a little boy would claim it and build a
sort of scooter with it, using wheels from old roller skates. These
boxes as well as the wooden cigar boxes that could be had from the
nearest candy shop, were always much in demand. I needed dozens of
them when I was a Den Mother for a den of cub scouts.

I remember

Margaret Suran wrote:
> wrote:
> > Sheldon wrote:
> >
> >>Forty years ago there were but a handful of stupidmarkets in NYC, and
> >>they were tiny, naturally no parking lot, usually three rather short
> >>aisles, and many had no shopping carts, a clerk would literally run to
> >>pick stuff off the shelves from your list and bring them up to the
> >>register... early on the register receipt was a brown paper bag,
> >>notated by a clerk who knew the price of every item in the store, who
> >>could actually do math with a pencil. But it took a long time before
> >
> >
> > The supermarket chains I remember are A&P. Daitsch (sp?) & Olinsky. A&P
> > sold this exotic coffee -- Bustello whole bean that you ground in the
> > store. My mother never bought it. Daitch was known for its dairy
> > products and lox/smoked white fish etc. I forget Olinsky. My friend
> > Joel B's father owned a few too, but I forget their name. These were
> > all large enough that you couldn't hand or call in a shopping list and
> > have the clerk pick and pack your order, but the smaller groceries
> > (like Sam's on the corner of Sheridan Ave and 164th St (?)) would. They
> > alse had barrrels of pickles at the counter. I always had to have one.
> > I think they were 7 or 8 cents each. There were larger chains like
> > "Stop and Shop" in the "shopping centers" in the suburbs near my Aunt
> > Gracie. During my teens the revolution began: a chain of then "big box"
> > supermarkets named Pathmark opened and stayed open 24 hrs/day.
> >
>
> Some years before you, I shopped at the Daitch on 167th Street, East
> of Jerome Avenue and at the A & P around the corner, on River Avenue,
> right under the elevated subway. The pickles you bought were a nickel
> and the sign on the barrel said "A Nickel A Pickle", just as it did in
> dozens of other stores. On the counter of each Kosher Deli, there was
> a small platter with pieces of a thin salami-like sausage and the sign
> next to it said "A Nickel A Stickel", stickel meaning "piece".

You mean "A Nickel A Schitickle".

Sheldon

Margaret Suran wrote:

> Some years before you, I shopped at the Daitch on 167th Street, East
> of Jerome Avenue and at the A & P around the corner, on River Avenue,
> right under the elevated subway. The pickles you bought were a nickel
> and the sign on the barrel said "A Nickel A Pickle", just as it did in
> dozens of other stores. On the counter of each Kosher Deli, there was
> a small platter with pieces of a thin salami-like sausage and the sign
> next to it said "A Nickel A Stickel", stickel meaning "piece".
>
> Remember the different cream cheeses at Daitch, all in wooden boxes
> and when a box became empty, a little boy would claim it and build a
> sort of scooter with it, using wheels from old roller skates. These
> boxes as well as the wooden cigar boxes that could be had from the
> nearest candy shop, were always much in demand. I needed dozens of
> them when I was a Den Mother for a den of cub scouts.
>
> I remember

Yes, I remember the different cream cheeses. And I remember those
scooters though I was either on the cusp of their going out of style or
too timid to get a box and build one. Something about this conversation
also reminds me of stickball and ringoleevio. My past sometimes seems
like a puzzle with pieces surfacing periodically.

-bwg
They shall grow not old, as we that are left grow old:
Age shall not weary them, nor the years condemn.
At the going down of the sun and in the morning
We will remember them.
-- Laurence Binyon