Mary Ostler

Naves aux chateingnes

Young, small turnips should be cooked in water without wine for the first boiling. Then throw away the water and cook slowly in water and wine, with chestnuts therein, or, if one has no chestnuts, sage.  Le Menagier de Paris – 14th century French

Part of the shell cut off  and then boiled in water for a few minutes to soften the shells.

I wish I had tried to dye the chestnuts a reddy pink… I think they would look quite a bit like mini-brains.

The turnips get peeled, and then cut up into smaller chunks, as I could not find small turnips  that the recipe calls for.

mmmm starchy turnip goodness.

The turnips were then boiled, drained, and then reboiled with water and wine. The chestnuts and sage were also added  at this time

I think I over boiled the turnips, as they turned a disturbing light  purple shade.

Outcome: I love turnips so it was a win/win situation for me. The chestnuts added texture to the dish, but The flavour is not all that great. Chestnuts were never my favorite so I might just be biased.