I’m compelled to do a little bragging today.  At left is a picture of just a few of the many parsnips that I’ve been pulling out of the garden.  I know you’re supposed to wait until after a good freeze sweetens these lovely root vegetables, but I don’t have that kind of patience.  Nor, in my opinion, do I need it:  They cook up as sweet and delish as anything I’ve had from the garden.  They’re growing in the bed closest to the kitchen, where I try to plant all my fall/winter veggies.  Their tops are a brilliant green and tall and bushy — like Italian parsley on steroids.  Parsnips are a relative of parsley but you can’t eat the tops, unfortunately.  The greens can be toxic and their stems contain a sap that causes skin rashes when exposed to the sun.  So if you’re pulling parsnips, wear gloves and long sleeves/pants.  But they do look so beautiful all scrubbed up and creamy white next to the orange Le Creuset.  Look for parsnip recipes on this site — we have quite a few and always are adding new stuff.                                                                                                                                                                            — Adrienne