Rutabaga in the pot

Chopped up rutabaga about to boil.   The rutabaga is lighter in color than the photo appears.

I pulled a couple of rutabaga a few days ago - much later in the season than usual.   They have been sitting on the kitchen counter, and I noticed they were starting to get soft.

So, they are now in a pot on the back of the stove, and will boil for awhile.

I like mashed rutabaga.   I'm also a mashed potato fan, but sometimes variety of flavor is a good thing, and rutabagas have a distinct flavor of their own.    I don't know how to describe it, but the flavor is stronger than  potatoes. 

Rutabaga (northern grown) and turnips (southern grown) used to be winter staples, and I've read that there used to be lots more varieties available through seed catalogs than there is now.   Maybe with more people interested in local foods, and more people using root cellars, and maybe even more people saving seed, we'll get some of that variety back. 

But, for now, I'm growing one, basic rutabaga.   It keeps well in the root cellar.   I can cook it almost any way I can cook a potato, and it is a nice change in flavor.

The only thing I don't like about rutabaga is that it takes longer to boil to softness than potatoes do.   George and I were discussing this the other night.   Taking longer to boil means  using more gas (we cook with gas), which costs money, and uses a non-renewable resource.    I love our soapstone wood stove for heating the house, but the stone means the stove is not good for boiling things.   If we ever get a second wood stove, I'd really like a small stove that was good for a pot or two.

I wonder if the fact that this rutabaga went through some frosts, and got a bit soft sitting on the counter, will mean it cooks up faster?   How will it taste?  Good?   Bad?   This is my experiment for the day.   It is good to try to do at least one scary thing per day (assuming that category has not already been forced upon one), and have one experiment per day.   Today, the goals do not overlap.   

Later edit:   Tastes good, and cooked more quickly than usual.   Why?   No idea.   That's the problem with running an experiment with two variables.   Oh well.    Beef and onion over mashed rutabaga is also a good way to end an experiment.