Spiced parsnips, hazelnuts and whipped ricotta

Serves: 4
Course: Side Dish
Cooking Time: 0 hr 40 mins
Ingredients
  • 500g parsnips
  • 1 packet of Green Saffron madras curry powder
  • 60ml of extra virgin olive oil
  • 65ml of raw honey
  • Salt and black pepper
  • 100g roasted hazelnuts, left whole or very roughly chopped
  • 200g of ricotta – we use Toons Bridge
  • 1 clove of garlic
  • Salt and black pepper to taste

Heat the oven to 200 degrees (180 degrees fan).

If your parsnips are 100 per cent clean there is no need to peel the skins, just top and tail them. Slice in circles or lengths, depending on how cheffy you want this to look. (Hint, lengths are nearly always cheffier.)

In a large bowl, rub the curry powder into the parsnips really well with 40ml of the olive oil and 25ml of the honey and season lightly.

Place on parchment on a baking tray and bake, turning twice in the oven to make sure they go golden brown and crispy all over – this should take about 30 minutes.

While they are baking, make the whipped ricotta. Put the soft cheese, garlic clove, the remaining honey and a little salt and pepper into a blender. Whizz it all together, taste and adjust the seasoning if needed.

Give the parsnips a good poke with a sharp knife in the thickest part to see if they are soft all the way through. When they are ready, allow to cool slightly, add the hazelnuts and toss together.

Spoon the whipped ricotta on to a serving plate and top with the warm, golden parsnips and hazelnut mixture. Drizzle over the remaining olive oil and serve immediately.

Jess Murphy

Jess Murphy

Jess Murphy, a contributor to The Irish Times, is a Kiwi chef living on the west coast of Ireland