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Home » All Recipes » Side Dishes » Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

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Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

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Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

An essential on our Christmas dinner table – and indeed with any roast dinner, these Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme are super easy to make and taste incredible!

Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

 

Essential Christmas Vegetable Dishes

What are your essential Christmas dinner vegetable dishes? For us it has to be roast potatoes, sprouts, braised red cabbage, carrots and, especially, roast parsnips!

Roast parsnips are the one dish I KNOW will get eaten, no matter what. We all LOVE them, but especially my little boy who absolutely adores them. In fact, you have to be quick with him around or you don’t get any!!

Rolled Stuffed Turkey Breast wrapped in Prosciutto

 

How to cut perfect roast parsnips

Having a small boy who really loves roast parsnips means I have had a lot of practice – and I’m pretty sure I’ve sussed out the perfect way to roast parsnips.

It all starts with cutting them – you want to cut parsnips for roasting so they are all a similar size and shape. This means you don’t get some burnt and others still half raw. However, this can be tricky given their tapered shape!

The way I do it is to select medium sized parsnips (so much easier if all the parsnips are all roughly the same size) and cut them in half widthways. The top half I cut into 4 lengthways and the bottom I cut into 2 lengthways – this creates 6 roughly equal sized parsnip batons, which will roast beautifully.

How to cut parsnips for even cooking

 

How to cook perfect roast parsnips

Once you have perfectly shaped parsnips, all you need to do is roast them. I find the best way to roast parsnips is to toss them in a small amount of olive oil, salt and pepper – then roast them for 25-30 minutes in a hot oven, turning once to ensure they get cooked evenly.

One super important factor in ensuring roast parsnip perfection is to make sure the parsnips are well spaced out in the roasting tray.

Ideally none of the parsnips should be touching each other and definitely don’t have more than one layer! Otherwise the parsnips will steam rather than roast – resulting in soggy soft parsnips, not crispy roasted ones!

Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

 

What is the best temperature for roast parsnips

I’ve experimented a little with this and I find roast parsnips cook best at 220C (200C fan / gas mark 7 / 425F).

It does depend a little on how big you cut them of course, but I find that parsnips actually cook quite quickly in the oven and so if you cook them at lower temperatures, they are fully cooked before they have a chance to go all crispy. Again resulting in soggy, mushy parsnips – not crispy crunchy ones!

Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

 

Should you parboil roast parsnips?

In a word no! Roast parsnips do not need par boiling. If you do, you will find your parsnips will end up more steamed than roasted. They don’t taste nearly as nice and the texture is soggy rather than crispy.

If you cut your parsnips into batons and cook them on a reasonably high heat there is no reason to par boil them.

Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

 

How to flavour roast parsnips

In my opinion, roast parsnips are lovely just as they are roasted in just a little oil, salt and pepper. But if you want to take things up a notch then there are lots of flavours you can add to make them even more delicious – for example a honey, maple syrup, mustard, or one of my all-time favourites honey AND mustard (check out my Honey Mustard Roast Parsnips recipe).

You can also add spices, such as cumin, coriander, cinnamon – like I have in this roasted roots recipe.

And herbs, such as thyme, sage, rosemary, all work very well with parsnips too.

And of course, garlic and chilli – which go with nearly everything – also pair well with parsnips!

This combination of honey and thyme with parsnips is a real winner, however. Honey roast parsnips is such a classic, but adding delicate, fragrant thyme into the mix just kicks it up a notch – as well as looking super pretty at the dinner table.

Plus this Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme recipe has the added bonus that, not being too outlandish, my kids didn’t notice I’d done anything especially different, and happily wolfed them down – HOORAH!

Honey Mustard Roast Parsnips and Carrots

Honey Mustard Roast Parsnips and Carrots

 

How to make Honey Roast Parsnips (and ensure the honey doesn’t burn!)

One of the problems with honey roast parsnips – or indeed honey roast anything, is that honey has a tendency to burn long before the rest of the food. I wince at recipes where they suggest putting the honey in at the start – this is truly a recipe for disaster!

To ensure honey roast parsnip perfection, simply cook your parsnips without honey for the first 20 minutes, then drizzle with honey and return to the oven for the final 10 minutes. 10 minutes is just enough time for the honey to caramelise slightly, but not long enough to burn – perfect!

The thyme, however, you want in right from the start – the thyme won’t burn and the longer it spends with the parsnips the more of that delicious herby flavour will transfer itself into the parsnips.

I also like to sprinkle over extra thyme when serving these Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme – partly for the taste, but mostly because it looks really pretty! 

Rolled Stuffed Turkey Breast wrapped in Prosciutto

 

What to do with leftover roast parsnips

Well, for the reasons I explained above, this isn’t really a problem in our house! But if parsnips are less popular in your house, I have a couple of ideas for your leftover roast parsnips!

If you have a lot of Christmas roast dinner leftovers then this Leftover Turkey and Vegetable Pie, would be a great choice – and so simple! Just chuck your leftovers into a pie dish with a creamy sauce and cover with pastry and voila! Your Christmas dinner leftovers have turned into a delicious new meal (and a great way to hide parsnips and sprouts from veg haters!)

Alternatively, you could add your leftover roast parsnips to these delicious sprout and potato cakes, which can be made using any vegetable leftovers from your Christmas meal.

Leftover Turkey and Vegetable Pie

Leftover Turkey and Vegetable Pie

 

What to serve with Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

These delicious Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme would go well with any roast dinner but especially:

  • Perfect Roast Turkey
  • Easy Roast Turkey Crown
  • Stuffed Rolled Turkey Breast
  • Classic Roast Chicken
  • Mulled Wine Glazed Christmas Ham
How to cook perfect roast turkey - the stress free way!

Perfect Roast Turkey – The Stress Free Way!

 

Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme
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5 from 2 votes

Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme

An essential on our Christmas dinner table – and indeed with any roast dinner, these Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme are super easy to make and taste incredible! (serves 6-8 depending on appetite)
Prevent your screen from going dark
Course Side Dish
Cuisine British
Prep Time 5 minutes
Cook Time 25 minutes
Total Time 30 minutes
Servings 8 people
Calories 134kcal
Author Eb Gargano

Ingredients

Metric - US Customary
  • 6 medium parsnips peeled and cut into 6 (see notes)
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 3 sprigs of thyme plus extra for garnish
  • 2 tablespoons runny honey

Instructions

  • Preheat your oven to 220C / 200C fan / gas mark 7 / 425F.
  • Place the prepared parsnips in a shallow roasting tray and drizzle with the olive oil. Add some salt and pepper and then scatter over the leaves of the thyme.
  • Toss everything together, so the parsnips are well coated, then arrange in one layer (see notes).
  • Place the parsnips in the preheated oven and roast for 20 minutes.
  • After 20 minutes remove from the oven, turn all the parsnips over, then drizzle with the honey. Return to the oven for a further 10 minutes or until the parsnips are golden and crispy and just starting to go brown at the edges.
  • Remove from the oven and serve scattered with a little more thyme for garnish.

Notes

(1) To cut parsnips into 6 equal sized pieces, first cut them in half widthways. Cut the top half into 4 lengthways and the bottom half into 2 lengthways – this creates 6 roughly equal sized parsnip batons, which will roast beautifully.
(2) One super important factor in ensuring roast parsnip perfection is to make sure the parsnips are well spaced out in the roasting tray. Ideally none of the parsnips should be touching each other and definitely don’t have more than one layer! Otherwise the parsnips will steam rather than roast – resulting in soggy soft parsnips, not crispy roasted ones!
Suitable for freezing.
Nutrition information is approximate and meant as a guideline only.

Nutrition Facts
Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme
Amount Per Serving
Calories 134 Calories from Fat 27
% Daily Value*
Fat 3g5%
Saturated Fat 0g0%
Cholesterol 0mg0%
Sodium 11mg0%
Potassium 435mg12%
Carbohydrates 25g8%
Fiber 5g21%
Sugar 9g10%
Protein 1g2%
Vitamin A 20IU0%
Vitamin C 20.4mg25%
Calcium 43mg4%
Iron 0.8mg4%
* % Daily Values are based on a 2000 calorie diet
Tried this recipe?I'd love to hear about it! Leave a review in the comments below.

 

Pin Perfect Roast Turkey for later

An essential on our Christmas dinner table – and indeed with any roast dinner, these Roast Parsnips with Honey and Thyme are super easy to make and taste incredible! #parsnips #roastparsnips #honeyroastparsnips #christmasdinner #easychristmasdinner #easychristmasrecipes #christmasrecipes #christmasfood #christmasmenu #easychristmas #easypeasyfoodie #cookblogshare #easypeasychristmas

 

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I am linking this up to Cook Blog Share and Cook Once Eat Twice.

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6 Comments

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Comments

  1. Corina Blum says

    4th December 2018 at 12:01 pm

    These look so good! In our house parsnips are one of those vegetables that me and Master Spice love and the other 2 refuse to eat. We never mind as both of us are quite happy to eat lots of them! Thanks for sharing with #CookOnceEatTwice x

    Reply
    • Eb Gargano says

      4th December 2018 at 1:07 pm

      Thanks Corina! ALL my family LOVE parsnips – I just can never make enough! Still, I’m definitely not complaining that my kids want to eat extra vegetables!! Eb x

      Reply
  2. Jacqui Bellefontaine says

    4th December 2018 at 1:37 pm

    Ohh I love roast parsnips with honey and thyme I bet they taste just wonderful. I could eat all of the ones on your tray myself. Luckily (for me), my lads don’t like roast parsnips so I often get to eat most of them and just toss MR B the odd one to keep him happy. Thanks for linking this to #CookBlogShare.

    Reply
    • Eb Gargano says

      5th December 2018 at 1:07 pm

      Hahaha – thanks Jacqui, yes so could I! Sadly my kids love them just as much as me – it’s always tricky to fit enough in the oven and no matter how many I make they always all get eaten!! Eb x

      Reply
  3. Anna | Once Upon A Food Blog says

    5th December 2018 at 2:54 pm

    I love roast parsnips too. I recently had a conversation with a group of friends who all swore you have to par-boil them so it’s good to find someone else who doesn’t!

    Reply
    • Eb Gargano says

      6th December 2018 at 11:37 am

      I have no idea why anyone would want to par-boil parsnips. They don’t taste as nice and the texture isn’t as nice either, and it’s more faff! It’s really worth doing for roast potatoes as they taste like chips if you don’t! And also you can’t do all the fluffing up of the edges, but parsnips, no! Eb x

      Reply

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Hi and welcome to Easy Peasy Foodie! I’m Eb – a professional blogger, busy mum and passionate foodie and it is my mission in life to make cooking EASIER and MORE DELICIOUS! READ MORE

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