My goodness, I was almost a Flavours delinquent! Life has been so crazy lately that Wednesday rolled around and I realized that I hadn't made my recipe for the week.

Well, back up a bit. Not only had I not made my recipe, to be truthful I had no idea what the ingredient of the week was!

This is what happens when you bake 36 kinds of cookies and squares at a time when work is throwing all sorts of curveballs. Blogging gets set aside for a bit. Cooking certainly was NOT a focus.

The good news is that things are almost under control again. The better news is that I made this recipe which, ahem, was flipping delicious!!!!!

Parsnips are a vegetable without a ton of flavour - this is why they are generally mixed with other vegetables as they don't overwhelm. I figured that if I roasted them more of their natural flavour would come out. Parsnips are also versatile - they can be combined in a sweet dish or a savoury one. With all those cookies and squares under my belt (literally *smile* one needs to taste) sweet was ruled out immediately!

I decided to make a savoury appetizer using parsnips which we ate last night as a part of our 'It's December 16th, We Haven't Decorated the House, and We Have Company Coming Tomorrow Decorating Blitz' dinner. I used cumin, curry, olive oil, coriander, maple syrup, and onion - from the list of ingredients suggested in the 'Flavour Bible'.

The result of my last minute panic was a delicious dish that you could use as a starter or a side The crisp parsnip 'fries' went well with the dip and were the star of the meal - really, they were addictive! Paul and I ate an entire pound of parsnips.

Later I found out that the concept of parsnip fries isn't new or unusual - a quick google search revealed 100s of similar choices. SIGH Oh well, I console myself by being amongst the company of happy eaters then. :-)

Parsnip fries with Curry Yoghurt Dip

1 lb parsnip
1 tablespoon olive oil
1 teaspoon ground cumin
1 teaspoon coriander
1 tablespoon maple syrup
salt and pepper
1/2 cup plain yogurt
1 teaspoon curry powder curry paste
1 green onion , minced

Peel parsnips; cut into 2 x 1/2-inch sticks.

In bowl, toss together parsnips, oil, cumin, coriander, and maple syrup. Add a 'grind' of salt and pepper.

Bake on greased baking sheet in 425 degree oven, turning occasionally, for 30 to 40 minutes or until browned and tender. You'll need to watch carefully near the end as the smaller parsnip sticks will brown quickly - don't toss them out as they are particularly delicious even though they might look like something you'd find on the forest floor.

In small bowl, stir together yogurt, curry paste and green onion. Serve sauce with parsnip fries