Until April 27, when the fickle warmth of spring decides to stay for good, the Aquidneck Growers Market stays cozy in the winter months inside Stoneacre Garden in Newport. Inside, vendors and farmers nestle together to create a winding path of tantalizingly fresh food and goods.
At this particular market, mushrooms, lavender sachets, breads, and seafood are boldly displayed in a perfect symphony of sense: texture, scent, sight. Further along are leafy greens and seedlings – like kohlrabi – for sale, and then mounded in an unassuming bin is a strange little root; knobby with thin, papery skin, it is often mistaken for ginger at first glance. This root vegetable is actually sunchoke.
Harvested by Luckyfoot Ranch in Saunderstown, RI, “sunchoke, or Jerusalem artichoke is actually the root of a sunflower,” explains Nikki, who represented the farm at the market. Sunchokes aren’t found at the dirt-end of “traditional” sunflowers – annual plants that are grown for the giant blooms and circular rows of seeds – but rather the perennial variety that is native to central North America and has since spread across the states, grown and harvested anywhere from California to Maine.
Luckyfoot Ranch was started by Matt Thibodeau when he was fresh out of high school, about fifteen years ago, on one acre on his family’s land. Now, the farm has blossomed into a six-acre parcel of land that follows organic guidelines and uses sustainable farming methods to produce in-season vegetables year-round. The sunchoke, like many root vegetables, makes its seasonal appearance from late autumn to early spring (look for them starting in October, lasting through April), and in the right conditions, can last weeks to months after harvesting.
For the case of this basket of tubers, these sunchokes were “overwintered” in the ground, and “harvested this past week, before they had the chance to sprout,” she says. That means that instead of surfacing fresh from a long stay in a root cellar, these roots were plucked from one of the three 100-foot-long dirt beds of sunchokes just days prior. The tubers are incredibly popular, among those in the know. “Customers had been asking for them, and so they were harvested for the market.”
Given their uniqueness, freshness, and how incredibly nutritious these tubers are, it’s easy to see why they are so popular. One cup of this root vegetable provides over 600 mg of potassium (about eighteen percent daily value). It is chock full of iron (close to thirty percent daily value), and also has significant amounts of vitamins C, B6, and magnesium, all of which makes this food heart-healthy. Sunchokes are also rich in a fiber called inulin, which promotes prebiotic health and is a good carbohydrate for diabetics because it does not affect blood sugar levels.
Jerusalem artichokes have a potato-like texture and a nutty, earthy flavor. “It does have a slight artichoke flavor,” Nikki relates, and others say the taste is close to water chestnuts, jicama, or potatoes. Because of its texture and flavor profile, the sunchoke is quite versatile to cook with. “I really like them in soup. They absorb flavor really well,” she offers. “I also like to make home fries with them,” a recipe that includes potatoes, onions, water, smoked paprika, turmeric, garlic, salt, and pepper, cooked on high with avocado oil. Sunchoke chips are also very popular.
To show off its versatility, I decided to make sunchoke in two ways. First, I used Nikki’s recommended combination of spices to make sunchoke chips. Then, I leaned into its potato-like qualities to make sunchoke gnocchi with goat cheese in a blood orange beet sauce inspired by this recipe idea from Almond Corner – the winter citrus sauce provides a “brightening” affect that cuts through the heavier, earthier tones of the sunchoke gnocchi.
Sunchoke Chips Recipe:
4-5 sunchokes
Salt and pepper to taste
¼ tsp smoked paprika
¼ tsp turmeric
Olive oil
Instructions:
- Preheat the oven to 400 degrees (F), and wash and dry sunchokes.
- Using a mandoline or a very sharp knife, thinly slice the root. Then, in a bowl, combine sunchoke with olive oil, salt, pepper, paprika, and turmeric.
- Spread the sunchoke onto a lined baking sheet in a single layer. Bake for 15 minutes, or until golden and crisp.
Sunchoke Gnocchi with Goat Cheese Recipe:
1.5 lbs. sunchoke
All-purpose flour
Goat cheese
2 large beets
2 blood oranges
3 Tbsp honey
¼ c. orange juice
Instructions:
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees (F)
- Wash and dry the sunchoke, then, prick them all over with a fork. Bake the tubers for about an hour or until very easily pierced with a fork. Let them cool, then split them in half and scoop out the flesh with a spoon and put into a large bowl. Discard the skins.
- Peel and cube the beetroot. Then, boil the beets in a large pot of water for about 40 minutes or until fork-tender.
- Mash the sunchoke flesh with a potato masher to make into a fluffy, uniform texture. Then, slowly add in flour, about a quarter cup at a time. Knead the sunchoke and flour into a dough, slowly adding more flour until the mixture holds together and is no longer sticky.
- Take the dough ball and cut it in half. Roll each half into long snakes, about one inch thick. Then, using a knife or a pastry cutter, cut the snakes into one inch “pillows.” Using the back of a fork, press a thumb into each pillow and roll it down the fork. This will give the gnocchi the traditional raised texture and an indentation on the back for the pasta to soak up sauce.
- Drain the beets and return to pot. Zest and juice both blood oranges and add to the pot along with orange juice and honey. Bring to boil and let it reduce for about five minutes or until the liquid has mostly evaporated. Then, blend into a puree.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil and add the gnocchi to it. Cook the gnocchi until it floats to the top of the pot, about five minutes. Drain, then serve with sauce and sprinkle crumbled goat cheese over the dish.
This gnocchi makes about four to five servings. The total cost of the ingredients (portioned) is about $13; the cost of each serving will be around $3.25.