Pear and parsnip gratin

The calendar says it's spring, despite yesterday's snow fall, so it's time to think about cleaning. For me, spring cleaning involves clearing out my garden, and my refrigerators. After a reckoning with the basement frig earlier this week, I chose this recipe to finish off the parsnips I bought at the last farmers market in October, and some pears that needed using.

Pear and parsnip gratin

Adapted from “Make It Ahead” by the Barefoot Contessa, Ina Garten

Ingredients

1¾ pounds parsnips, peeled, trimmed and cut into 1-inch pieces

3 Bosc pears, peeled, cored and cut into 1-inch chunks

2 cups water

3 tablespoons butter, softened

½ cup sour cream

2 large eggs, lightly beaten

1 teaspoon grated orange zest

¾ teaspoon ground ginger

2½ teaspoons salt

1 teaspoon white pepper

Method

Bring parsnips, pears and 2 cups water to a boil and then simmer, covered, until parsnips are very tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer parsnips and pears with slotted spoon to a food processor and puree.

Combine butter, sour cream, eggs, orange zest, ginger, salt and pepper in a bowl. Mix in hot puree. Pour evenly into a shallow gratin dish; she calls for a 9-by-12 dish.

At this point the dish can be covered and refrigerated for a few days in advance, or you can bake it directly in a preheated 350-degree oven for 40 to 45 minutes until “slightly puffed and golden on top.”

Rating: Excellent flavors, but odd texture, and if there was any puffing, it was hardly detectable. She did call for using a food mill, one of the few kitchen gadgets I don’t own, and for unpeeled parsnips and pears, but I have a hard time thinking either of those variations could account for the resulting disappointment. Mind you, a taste of the unbaked puree was mighty tasty, so I could totally see making it again only leaving out the eggs and just serving the puree unbaked, because the flavor combo was excellent and puree would have been a much better texture than the ugh it turned into.