What the Garden Turned Up

We've been eating lots of lettuce and radishes, and some spinach as it comes on. Everything else in the garden is still growing, growing, growing. As we were puttering around the other night, Keith asked how we would know when the turnips were ready, since this is our first year growing them. I said I thought when they started pushing out of the ground. He lifted up the huge leaves and sure enough, there were the purple top poking out. So we pulled them out and cleaned them up and wondered what to do with them.

My dad likes to eat them raw, so that's always an option. I made a roast in the crock-pot last night and peeled and cubed two of them to toss in with some carrots and potatoes. Bert scarfed them down, but Keith and I thought they tasted a little, um, earthy. Maybe next I'll try mashing them, loaded with butter. We only have about 8 or 10 more, so at least we aren't stuck with a ton of them. Anybody have any ideas on how to prepare them? Unless we discover some way we really like to eat them, I don't think turnips will get a second shot in our garden next year.