First off, those suckers are hard! I use a large butcher knife and my kitchen hammer to slice right down the middle. Place the knife lengthwise across the rutabaga and where the knife tip extends beyond the rutabaga, tap that firmly with the hammer until the knife cuts all the way through. I then cut the halves into 1 inch slices. This makes the slices easy to peel with a peeling knife. After that I cut into 1 inch cubes and put them in a saucepan covered with water to boil. Once the cubes are soft, I drain and mash with butter.