These radical rutabaga recipes are here to “turnip” your kitchen game!
The humble rutabaga is often overshadowed by other root vegetables like potatoes and carrots. I never had one until I was an adult.
But you don’t want to miss out on this veggie!
First, rutabagas are super delicious. As part of the turnip family, raw rutabagas have an earthy, slightly peppery flavor.
When cooked, they are buttery, savory, and mildly sweet.
Secondly, rutabagas are super healthy. They’re high-fiber, nutrient-rich, and loaded with health benefits.
One rutabaga contains more than 100% of your daily vitamin C intake. They’re also very low in calories and have half the calories of a potato.
They’re great for weight loss and because of all that vitamin C, they prevent premature aging. Amazing, right?
From noodles to cakes, you’ll love these 13 game-changing rutabaga recipes.
1. Simple Spiralized Rutabaga Noodles
These delicious noodles are healthy, allergy-friendly, and diet-friendly. They’re also very easy to prepare, making your night a whole lot easier.
You only need some basic equipment and four ingredients: rutabagas, oil, salt, and garlic powder.
That’s it! In less than 10 minutes, you have a healthy and hearty dinner.
Serve these rutabaga spiralized noodles on their own or with your favorite pasta sauce. They’d also be great in a stir-fry!
2. Baked Root Vegetable Hash
This hearty and healthy hash is the perfect way to start your morning. It’s packed with protein and antioxidants.
It will nourish your body and keep you full all morning.
This hash features rutabaga, sweet potatoes, parsnips, and plantains roasted and seasoned to perfection.
It’s topped with eggs for extra protein and flavor.
It’s slightly sweet, super savory, and seriously delicious.
It’s also customizable and you could add more/different veggies or your favorite meat. I’d add bell peppers and bacon!
3. Rutabaga Gratin
This rutabaga gratin is creamy, cheesy, and insanely indulgent. You’ll love it.
This rutabaga gratin is warm, hearty, and delicious, like a good potato gratin. But it has a fraction of the calories.
It’s also more flavorful thanks to the peppery bite of rutabagas.
4. Mashed Rutabaga with Sour Cream and Dill
If you love mashed potatoes, you’ll love this mashed rutabaga. This dish is just as simple and delicious as mashed potatoes but has fewer calories.
Simply peel and chop your rutabaga into cubes. Then boil and steam the rutabaga until nice and tender.
Once it’s soft, mash the heck out of it.
Add in the fresh dill, sour cream, and seasonings. Mashed rutabagas are creamy, tangy, and so tasty.
This meal is great if you’ve had a hard day. You can take your anger out on the rutabagas. It’s total comfort food, so it will soothe your soul.
5. Swede Nutmeg Cake with Brown Butter Frosting
Step aside carrot cake, there’s a new root vegetable cake in town!
This complex (in flavor) cake might just become your new favorite. It’s sweet, spicy, nutty, and deliciously buttery.
It tastes like a vanilla spice cake but is more nuanced.
That’s largely due to the rutabaga! It adds moisture, flavor, and texture, just like your favorite zucchini loaf.
When you add a delicious brown butter frosting and crunchy hazelnuts on top, it’s heavenly.
6. Swede Soup (Rutabaga Soup)
Cold days call for healthy, flavorful, and creamy soups. That’s where this Swede (rutabaga) soup comes in!
You start with roasted rutabagas. It’s an easy process, and you can do it a day before making your soup.
Roasting brings out the sweetness of the rutabagas, and they’re delicious.
This soup also has sauteed carrots, onions, and lots of bold spices. It’s savory but with underlying sweet notes. It’s absolutely fabulous.
Did I mention that it’s vegan? So, absolutely everyone can enjoy this soup!
7. Roasted Balsamic Beets and Rutabaga
This roasted beets and rutabaga dish is so pretty. Although beautiful food doesn’t always mean delicious food, this dish is both! And it’s quite simple, too.
Thinly sliced rutabaga, red beets, and yellow beets are layered horizontally in a skillet. The effect is similar to that of a ratatouille.
Everything is roasted with olive oil, thyme, and balsamic. It’s healthy, earthy, and very yummy.
8. Rutabaga Fries
I love fries of all shapes and sizes. Wedge, waffle, steak, curly, traditional, I don’t discriminate.
And I love when fries are made with other veggies, like these rutabaga fries. After all, variety is the spice of life. And they’re delicious!
These fries are great because they’re low-carb and low-calorie. They’re baked in the oven, so you won’t use excess oil.
You could totally make these in the air-fryer for extra crispy fries.
9. Rutabaga Soup with Smoked Cheddar and Rosemary
Prepare to be transported to the days of apple orchards, cozy sweaters, and crunchy leaves. This is the ultimate fall soup.
You’ll find notes of wheat beer, smoky cheese, tart apple, sweet rutabaga, and piney rosemary. It’s thick, creamy, and cheesy.
Top it with bacon, a drizzle of cream, and fresh rosemary. It’s seriously so good.
10. Raw Rutabaga Salad with Apples
Nourish your body with this delicious raw salad. The ingredients might be simple but the health benefits are insane.
Since everything is raw, you retain every nutrient from each ingredient.
That means that this salad is loaded with vitamin C, fiber, potassium, selenium, and fats.
Did I mention that it’s delicious? It’s peppery, tangy, sweet, tart, earthy, and acidic!
It also has great textures, with a mix of crunchy, soft, and creamy.
11. Roasted Rutabaga
If you love potatoes but want a low-carb alternative, have some rutabaga! These roasted rutabagas are perfect for high-volume, low-carb eating.
This recipe is simple but delicious. The rutabaga is seasoned with garlic powder, salt, and pepper.
However, this is totally customizable and you can use whatever seasonings you like.
I think it would be delicious if you added a little parmesan cheese, too.
12. Sweet Buttered Rutabaga
If you like chunky mashed potatoes, I think you’ll like this dish. It’s like mashed potatoes before the mashing. Only, it uses rutabagas instead!
Therefore, the dish is a little bit sharper and sweeter. But it’s still buttery, creamy, and irresistibly delicious.
13. Rutabaga Hash with Cabbage Bacon and Leeks
This hash is so good that you’ll want it for breakfast, lunch, and dinner. And it couldn’t be more simple!
Chop all the veggies and raw bacon, then add everything to a cast-iron skillet.
Season to taste with your favorite seasonings. Then, roast it for just under an hour.
In the end, you’ll have sweet and savory caramelized veggies with delicious crispy bacon.
Each flavor has partied with the others, so every bite is mouthwatering.