I often think about my ancestors, most of them real Farm Women, and how they managed to survive on what they grew in this cold climate with such a short growing season.  If the weeds took over the garden, they wouldn’t have beans to can. If the potatoes got blight, their children’s’ stomachs would growl. They always had rutabagas, though, to get them through the tough times.  I even have a letter written by my great-grandmother who was worrying about the rutabaga crop one cold and cloudy summer.  Rutabagas are the most versatile vegetable I know. You can boil them, roast them with olive oil and garlic, fry them,  eat them raw or pickle them.  Although I’ve never tried it, I’ve heard you can even eat the greens.  They are easy to grow and are great keepers. I don’t think there is anyone in northern Minnesota who doesn’t know what a rutabaga…