Jerusalem Artichoke Soup

Jerusalem Artichoke Soup

Jerusalem artichokes, AKA sunchokes, are available from several farmers at the market these days. I recently bought some from Monte Vista Farms, and, inspired by a delicious roasted sunchoke soup I recently ate at Campo, the restaurant of Los Poblanos Historic Inn and Organic Farm in Albuquerque, I adapted this soup recipe from Alex Guarnaschelli. While she calls for roasting some of the sunchokes and stewing others, I roasted all of them. And I made a vegetable stock instead of using just water. The result is a soup that’s robust in flavor and color.

The Recipe

Yield: six – eight servings

Ingredients

• 1 1/2 pounds Jerusalem artichokes, scrubbed clean and dried
• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 1 red onion, peeled and sliced
• 1 clove garlic, peeled and crushed lightly with the side of a knife
• Sea salt and freshly ground pepper
• Small bunch fresh thyme, tied with string
• 4 to 5 cups water (or vegetable stock, if desired)
• 1 cup heavy cream

PREPARATION

1. Preheat the oven to 450 degrees F.
2. Place 1/2 the Jerusalem artichokes on a baking sheet. Drizzle them with 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Place the tray in the center of the oven and cook until they are completely yielding when pierced with the tip of a knife, 30 to 45 minutes.
3. Meanwhile, slice the rest of the Jerusalem artichokes in 1/2-inch thick slices. Heat a medium pot and add the remaining 1 1/2 tablespoons olive oil. Add the onion and garlic and season with salt and pepper. Cook for 5 minutes. Add the thyme and the Jerusalem artichokes slices and stir to blend the ingredients. Check the seasoning. Cook for 5 to 10 minutes and add 4 cups water.
4. Cook until the Jerusalem artichokes are completely tender, 25 to 30 minutes. If the liquid reduces too much during this cooking time, add the remaining 1 cup water. Remove the roasted ones from the oven, quarter them and add them directly to the soup mixture. Taste for seasoning.
5. Remove the thyme from the pot. Add the cream. Puree the soup in small batches in the blender (or a hand blender) until smooth. For a more “rustic” texture, puree only 1/2 and leaving the other 1/2 “chunky.” Serve with crusty sourdough or a seeded bread to bring out the naturally nutty flavor of the soup.
6. Serving suggestion: Crusty sourdough bread or seeded bread.

This locally inspired recipe is brought to you by Pam Walker. Pam is an avid home cook, writer, and local farm and food activist who is also a board member of the Santa Fe Farmers’ Market Institute. Thank you, Pam, for helping inspire us to use locally sourced ingredients!