I’ve been experimenting with the Rutabaga (also called turnip or swede depending on where you live) to see if it is something I want to grow in my garden next year. Some may yawn at the thought of eating the much derided vegetable, but it can be tasty if prepared right and is very economical. I paid 79 cents a kilo at the grocery store when I bought my first test rutabagas.

If you’re Scottish, you probably know about the traditional dish of “Tatties and Neeps”, which is basically mashed potatoes (tatties) served alongside boiled rutabaga (neeps). Well, I’ve come up with two versions of it, one traditional and one …uhh… not so traditional, and both are tasty and easy to make. Here’s the non-traditional one.

Bob’s Neep and Tattie Salad, version 1.0

Produces about five servings.

All kinds of Scots are going to think I’m right ’round the bend with this one. This is not a traditional Scottish recipe at all, but a fun one for the summer, and mostly true to the cuninary history of the region. Like the more traditional hot versions, the starchy potato and sweeter rutabaga compliment each other nicely when cold. Honestly, give it a shot, because it was really quite good.

You will need:

• 1 softball-sized rutabaga
• 3 medium-sized white potatoes
• 3 scallions (green onion)
• 1/2 cup of Miracle Whip
• 1 tbsp milk
• 1 tbsp white vinegar
• 1 tsp of American-style yellow prepared mustard, like the kind you put on hot dogs
• 1 tbsp of paprika

This is same recipe I use to make potato salad, just without the rutabaga (using five or six potatoes instead). The variations on this recipe are endless; hard boiled egg is good addition, for example. If you are into that, use two eggs and chop them up fine. Other people like adding bacon (since everything is good with bacon), though I don’t consider it essential.

For those who are confused, Miracle Whip is a brand name for a kind of sweet, tangy mayonnaise-like product sold in North America. I have no idea about its availability elsewhere. We are using it because of its tang. If you only have (or prefer) mayo to work with, you can approximate the Miracle Whip flavour by adding a few pinches of sugar, and by using less milk and more vinegar. Lemon juice might work too, though I can’t say that I’ve tried. Even straight mayo is not likely to go wrong here.

Bring 2 litres of water to a boil in a 4 litre pot. While its working its way to the boil, peel the skins off of the rutabaga and the potatoes and dice them into chunks no larger than 2 cm. When the water boils, drop in the rutabaga. Three minutes later, drop in the potatoes.

Unlike the tatties and neeps recipe below, you have to be fairly exact with the cooking and it can depend on your stove, pot, altitude, etc… We want to boil the veggies until they are cooked, tender enough to put a fork into, but not so tender that they disintegrate when you do so. The edges of the potatoes, in particular, will flake away, and the smaller ones will fall apart, but many of the larger cubes will stay intact. On my stove, this process never takes longer than 20 minutes. Keep in mind that the tatties and neeps will cook and soften a little more after they are drained, but will firm up a tad when they are cold.

While the veggies cook, chop the scallions into small rounds a few millimetres in thickness. Use only the freshest, crispest parts of the onion. When the neeps and tatties reach the desired tenderness, drain them immediately, throw in the scallions, cover the lot and put it in the fridge to cool for at least four hours.

To make the salad, mix the Miracle Whip and the mustard in a measuring cup, adding the milk and vinegar a little bit at a time until the mixture takes on the consistency of a creamy salad dressing. If it’s still too thick, add more milk. Mix together some or all of the dressing, along with the paprika, the tatties, neeps, and scallions, until all of the larger chunks are coated evenly with dressing. If you find yourself with too little dressing you can always add some more Miracle Whip and milk. Some of the smaller potatoes will fall apart during the mixing phase, but don’t worry; we want this to happen as they create part of the dressing.

Put it in the fridge for an hour or more to cool off again. Then enjoy! It is a summer dish and intended to be eaten cold. Eat it along with things like cold meats, deviled eggs and cheese, and with crispy veggies like carrots and bell peppers.

….

Okay. Now that I’ve got he non-traditional recipe out of my system, here’s the more traditional one, also very good.

Bob’s One Pot Mashed Tatties and Neeps, version 1.0

makes about 5 servings

According to the Scots, this recipe is properly called “Clapshot” but I think Tatties and Neeps sounds better. Now that I’ve tried the dish, I’m not sure if I can ever go back to straight mashed potatoes again. It is an incredibly easy dish to make and only requires one pot.

You will need:

• 1 softball-sized rutabaga
• 3 medium-sized white potatoes
• 1 tsp dehydrated onion
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 1/2 tsp ground pepper
• 2 tbsp of butter

Fresh onion is OK too, but I’m too lazy to chop it fine enough to not alter the texture of the mash, hence the dehydrated onion.

Bring 2 litres or so of water to a boil in a 4 litre pot. While this is happening peel the skins off of the rutabaga and the potatoes and dice them into chunks. Diced up, they will represent around 6 cups of food. When the water boils, drop in the rutabaga. Five minutes later, drop in the potatoes. We do this because the potatoes cook faster. Boil until tender, a process that will take around 25 minutes after the potatoes go in. Don’t feel as if the timing has to be perfect. This isn’t like cooking pasta. All we want is for both the tatties and the neeps to be mashable without turning into slag.

Drain the water but reserve about a cup of it. Throw in the butter, the salt, the pepper and the onion. Don’t worry about melting the butter or anything — waste of time. The heat of the tatties and the neeps melts it in less than a minute anyway. Now mash the heck of of it with a potato masher, stirring in some of the water you saved until the desired creaminess is reached. Also be sure to stir the mix with a spoon or fork, just to make sure everything mixes up nicely. Keep it covered before serving so it doesn’t dry out.

And that’s it, mashed tatties and neeps. It’s like mashed potatoes, only better. Serve it as you would mashed potatoes alongside your favourite meat or, if you are feeling traditional, haggis with a dram of whisky.