Gilfeather turnip soup with sea-legs

I invented this based on a bitchin' soup I tasted a couple years ago at the 4 Columns Inn in Newfane, VT. My ad hoc recipe, featuring the legendary Gilfeather Turnip (check this link for word on a movie about this heirloom vegetable, that's how much we love it in Vermont:
http://www.ibrattleboro.com/article.php?story=2004062809212420). I bought the turnip at the local Farmer's Market on Saturday and it really was as big as my head. Turns out I could only fit about half of it in my largest soup pot.

Take:
1 chopped onion
1 T olive oil or butter
1 box chicken broth
4 cups cubed Gilfeather turnip
2 cups cubed potato (I used a waxy one to add more texture to the soup)
1 cup cubed yellow carrot (found this at Walker Farm, the light color means the soup has carrot sweetness but not carrot color)
1 bay leaf
1 6 oz. can of lump crab meat (or fresh if you can get it)
salt to taste

Saute the onion in the butter or oil until it starts to look glassy. Then add the broth, root vegetables and bay leaf. Bring to a boil and simmer for about an hour or until turnip pieces are soft (the potato and carrot may not be so soft, that's OK). The soup pot I used was larger than my (electric) stove element, so I used a heat disperser to keep everything cookin' and avoid burning food to the bottom of the pan. (This technique also works really well for brown rice.)

Allow the soup to cool (perhaps overnight in the fridge). To finish soup, mash up the root chunks with a masher or slotted spoon. Bring back to a simmer and add water for desired consistency. Add the crab meat and stir in so it starts to break up and flavor the whole soup. Marry flavors by simmering everything for another 10 minutes or so, then salt & serve! For someone who isn't a huge fan of vegetable tastes, I thought this soup was pretty delicious!