If you’ve got a large harvest of parsnips and don’t want to save them all for Christmas, this lovely warming pasta dish will make good use of them. The mixture of flavours in this sage, parsnip and bacon linguine is sure to satisfy your taste buds without taking much time to prepare.
Growing parsnips
Parsnips are a low-maintenance crop that can be sown in spring ready for parsnips in autumn and winter. They’re so little maintenance that they can be left in the ground until you’re ready to dig them up and use them – and frost will even improve the taste.
However, they are slow growing, so if you’re short on space it’s ideal to just grow a few so you can use the room to grow fast-growing crops too.
Root veg needs deeply-cultivated, free-draining soil that’s free of large debris like stones. Sow the seeds in spring when the soil is beginning to warm up. Then germination will occur in around 28 days. Alternatively, germinate seeds indoors between layers of damp kitchen roll, then plant them out into the garden about 6 inches apart. Protect them with cloches until the leaves start to push through.
If you’ve sown between March and May, you’ll have a harvest ready from October to November. Full of vitamin C, potassium, folate, and fibre, parsnips also deliver a boost of antioxidants as well as flavour to your meals.
Sage, bacon and parsnip linguine recipe card
This tasty recipe is easy to make, so gather together your harvested parsnips, snip some sage from your herb garden and rustle up this warming autumn-winter meal.
Make the most of your veg garden by planning recipes that you want to create and planting according to the meals you love. Let me know if you like this recipe, or what recipes you like to use parsnips in.
David Domoney is a Chartered Horticulturalist, Broadcaster, and Author. David has worked with a number of the UK’s leading garden retailers as a plant buyer and strategic consultant. With more than 30 years experience, in horticulture, David is as passionate about plants now as he was when he bought his first plant at a village fete.
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