Have you ever seen a recipe for Jerusalem artichoke/Sunchoke/Topinambur-something that begins with "Wash and peel the Jerusalem artichokes". I have. While I obviously understand the washing bit, then I'm a bit unsure about the peeling. See the specimen above? That's just one example of an artichoke I had to deal with earlier today, when preparing lunch for K's mum who came to visit her grand-daughter (who's doing splendidly, by the way:)). Have you ever seen such a knobbly Jerusalem artichoke before? It was beautiful - crisp and fresh, but had I attempted to peel it, there wouldn't have been much left. So I gave it a very good wash and scrub, and simply chopped it. And that's what I'll do from now on - I'll only buy Jerusalem artichokes with thin and beautiful skin, so I can omit that tricky "peel the artichoke" bit...
The inspiration for combining mushrooms and Jerusalem artichokes came from one Estonian monthly, but I've changed the process and proportion so considerably so there's no need to credit anything specific :)
Jerusalem artichoke and mushroom soup
(Maapirni-seenesupp)
Serves 4
250 g Jerusalem artichokes (aka topinambur aka Sunchokes)
250 g mushrooms
1 medium yellow onion
2 Tbsp butter
600 ml water
400 ml whipping/heavy cream (use single/light cream, if you prefer)
salt
freshly ground black pepper
fresh thyme, to garnish
Wash and peel (or not :)) the Jerusalem artichokes. Peel the onions. Clean the mushrooms. Chop all into small chunks.
Heat the butter in a heavy saucepan, add the artichokes, onion and mushrooms and sauté for about 5 minutes. Season with some salt.
Add hot water, bring to the boil. Reduce heat, cover and simmer for 10-15 minutes, until the Jerusalem artichokes are softened.
Transfer into a blender and purée until smooth.
Return to the saucepan, add cream and reheat. Season with salt and pepper (and some dried porcini or chantarelle powder, if you wish), garnish with fresh thyme and serve.
Some shaved Parmesan cheese would also be nice.
8 comments:
Yummy Pille! Jerusalem artichokes are a big favourite of mine and for some reason seem christmassy to me :)
Wish I had some of this soup right now, where it is -11 C. The combination of sunchokes/mushrooms sounds delicious. YUM!
OI, see supp paistab taevalik. Ma ei ole kunagi maapirni kasutanud, aga selgelt peaks :)
Pille, do they grow Jerusalem artichokes in Estonia? do not remember ever seeing them on sale...
The combination of sunchokes/mushrooms sounds delicious.
Cat Lady - they're delicious indeed!
Mary & Prashant - mushrooms and sunchokes really complemented each othre.
Kat - kindlasti! Turul täitsa müüakse.
Katrina - they're widely grown (my mum has been doing that for years), and available both at the markets (I bought mine from Keskturg) as well as in the shops (these are usually imported, however).
Wish I had some of this soup right now, where it is -11 C. The combination of sunchokes/mushrooms sounds delicious
In searching for a recipe for a soup with these ingredients - I knew it had to exist - I stumbled upon your lovely blog. I've started browsing through it and really love the things you make! (Two rugelach recipes, wow.) Will definitely check back regularly.
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