Parsnip, carrot, and sweet potato curry

I didn't grow up eating parsnips, and the few times I have tried to cook them over my adult years they have pretty much always tasted sort of like a bland carrot that has a bitter, sour undertaste that, in my opinion ruins anything you put it in.

Enter the 2011 CSA box, which has been providing us with a surplus of parsnip lately. The first shipment I added into one of our favorite soups, the carrot-rutabaga soup, and sadly, it ruined it. I wasn't too excited about cooking up the second shipment, so I decided to ask the internets for some suggestions on how to make parsnip taste good. "Parsnip curry" and "roasted parsnip" were what came back. So I googled this recipe, and cooked it up today with some modifications. I had decided that if this recipe came out bad I would give up on parsnips forever.

Happily, it came out very good! None of the "yuck" factor I associate with parsnip at all. Also, I think it can be made with many different combos of root vegetables, squash would be good in here, or potato, whatever you have on hand (maybe not beets though).

Sweet potato, carrot, and parsnip curry

Ingredients:

• 3 medium sweet potatoes
• 4 medium carrots
• 2 large parsnips
• 1 large onion, sliced (or 2 medium onions, sliced)
• 280ml/10floz coconut milk (about 1/2 a can)
• 1 teaspoon turmeric 
• 1 teaspoon trinidadian curry powder (can substitute with more tumeric)
• 2 cinnamon sticks
• 1 teaspoon chilli powder
• Half a teaspoon fenugreek (also called Methi) (can leave out if you don't have this)
• 2 teaspoons red hot sauce (optional)
• Vegetable oil
• Salt

1. Peel the sweet potatoes, carrots, and parsnips and cut into thick chunks.
2. Fry the onion in oil until soft, then add the spices and cook gently for a few more minutes.
3. Add the sweet potatoes, carrots and parsnips and stir well.
4. Add the coconut milk, heat to simmering point and then cook gently for about 20 minutes until the vegetables are tender. You may need to add water to prevent it from burning. Also feel free to add water if you want the curry more saucy. And don't we all love saucy curries.
5. Add salt to taste, and red hot sauce at the end for a bit more zing.
6. Enjoy!