Spring treat

Here's a way to get some early vegetables from your garden: plant parsnips. Traditionally, parsnips are grown throughout the summer and left in the ground over the winter. At a time when the root vegetables stored in the root cellar from the previous fall are running out, and before the new crop of spring vegetables can be harvested, parsnips can be dug out and enjoyed as soon as the soil thaws. Parsnips are always better tasting after they have been subject to a frost, which turns their starches to sugar. They make a great base for a pureed soup, or can even be sliced thinly and baked in the oven with a little oil and salt for a crunchy snack.