Jerusalem Artichoke and Mushrooms with Parmesan Polenta

The Germans have this wonderful tuber hanging around in wintertime.  It's my new favorite food, and my new favorite word too.

Topinambur!

It's like an artichoke and a potato decided to combine and produce the cutest, tastiest thing ever.  The potato was all, "Hey, Arty, I'mma let you choke, but we would make the best baby of all time."  So you have this food which combines the texture of a potato with the taste of an artichoke, and has none of those pesky pokes.  And even though it tastes like an artichoke, they aren't closely related.

Hungry Fiance's parents were visiting over the weekend.  When we told them our plans to cook Topinambur, they startledly told us the only use they'd ever known for it was in a Badisch schnapps.  Even the older generation can learn something!

I love artichokes and I always have.  Not long ago I dug up a fourth-grade paper declaring that my favorite foods were steak and artichokes.  (Cheese enchiladas also had a special place in my heart and in my belly.)  Needless to say, my tastes have developed since then (hellOOOO chipotles!), but I still do love me a good artichoke.  Be it a leaf dipped in pure butter, or a heart marinated in oil, you can't go wrong.

This recipe uses gorgeous local (to Germany) and seasonal (to winter) products.  It's filling but light.  And it makes enough for leftovers!!  Cooking in vegetable broth makes the polenta nutty and winningly flavorful.  Then you add cheese and butter to that, and you're a thousand miles high before you've even gotten to the main event.  While it takes a bit of time to boil the artichokes, there is nothing complicated about this meal.

Do splurge on real-deal parmesan.  It doesn't have to be Parmigiano Reggiano DOP or anything, but: buy a chunk of cheese and grate it.  Nothing that comes out of a canister.  You need so little of it, I think I dropped €1.75 on my piece and that was a) almost double what I needed and b) at one of the most expensive farmers' markets in town.

Other news that made today even more exciting: I got my camera back!  I have a new display, and on top of that they definitely cleaned my viewfinder.  Everything looks bright and cheery through that viewfinder now.  I am a happy lady!

There, now doesn't that look brighter?  Don't tell me it's because I jiggled with the settings post-hoc.

Jerusalem Artichoke and Mushrooms with Parmesan Polenta (Topinambur mit Polenta)

adapted from Schrot & Korn

serves 4

prep time: 30 minutes (includes boiling the 'chokes)

cook time: 15 minutes

ingredients:

500 g Jerusalem artichokes
750 g vegetable broth (approximately; it's best to follow your polenta's cooking instructions)

120-200 g quick-cook polenta (again, follow your polenta's cooking instructions)

1 red onion
1 garlic clove
250 grams mushrooms
2 tbsp roughly chopped parsley
2 tbsp olive oil

salt and pepper, to taste
2 tbsp butter

30 g grated Parmesan cheese

directions:

Boil a large pot of salted water.  Add the Jerusalem artichokes and boil for 10-15 minutes, until they are soft but still a bit firm.  (The awesome German word for this is bissfest - bite-firm.)  Drain and rinse with cold water until they are just cool enough to handle.  Peel and cut into 3/4-inch cubes.

I don't know about you guys, but I can see these little darlings smiling at me.

Cut the onion in half through the root, then slice lengthwise into long, thin strips.  Dice the garlic.  Clean the mushrooms; if they are large, halve or quarter them.  Roughly chop the parsley.

Boil the vegetable broth.  Add polenta and cook according to polenta's directions.  Cover and leave warm.


Heat the oil on medium-high heat in a large pan.  Add the artichoke chunks to the pan and fry until lightly browned, about 2 minutes.  Turn the heat to medium and add the garlic, onion and mushrooms.  Cook until soft, about 7 minutes.  Season with salt and pepper to taste.

Stir the butter and cheese into the polenta.  Let sit for a minute to allow the cheese to melt.

Serve polenta and spoon the vegetables on top.  Sprinkle with parsley.  Season again with salt and pepper to taste.