Jerusalem Artichokes and Fava Beans
As regular readers of Stephencooks know, I'm not much of a trendsetter -- or follower. My rule is: if I like to eat it, I'll cook it, and then blog it -- so I happily present timeworn recipes that I love, things that were hot twenty years ago, and a lot of my dishes, while tasty, are about as ordinary as apples. But this week it turns out I'm livin' large, trendwise.
Elise was away for a few days last week and I tend towards meals of rice, steamed vegetables and beans when I'm just making dinner for myself. So the other night I set out to make a simple meal with some Jerusalem artichokes and dried fava beans I had in stock.
'Chokes and beans: extremely basic, not indulgent or over-the-top in any way, and certainly not that sexy-looking. It was a good meal, though, and I got a pretty nice picture of it, considering, but still -- like MagicTofu (Slurp and Burp) in his recent post about sautéed watercress -- I was wondering why I would even want to post this recipe.
But then, just when I was about to move on to the elegant and groundbreaking breakfast post I've been working on (Oeuf en Gelée avec Hijiki et Saucisson de Canard) I came across a Bon Appetit feature, "Top Trends: The Hot 10" (no longer available on their site) in which the ugly little Jerusalem artichoke pops up in slot #9 on the tastemaking 'zine's list of "the year's most delicious obsessions!" Well, that puts my lonely little dinner in a whole new light, now doesn't it?
Of course, there is an argument to be made for the idea that it's history, not a trend, when you read about it in Bon Appetit, but please: let me feel trendy and hip for a day or two...!
Jerusalem Artichokes and Fava Beans
1-1/2 cup dried fava beans
1/2 lb Jerusalem artichokes
1/2 red pepper, seeded and chopped
1 clove garlic, minced
2 thin slices pancetta, chopped
butter
3 T parsley, minced
salt, hot sauce to taste
Soak the beans overnight in water to cover. Rinse and simmer until tender, about an hour. Drain and allow to cool. Nick the end of each bean with a sharp knife and squeeze the bean out of its skin. Discard skins and set beans aside.
Scrub the Jerusalem artichokes and slice very thin. Sauté the pancetta in a teaspoon of olive oil until starting to crisp around the edges. Remove to a side plate. Add some butter to the sauté pan and sauté the Jerusalem artichoke slices over medium heat, stirring and turning occasionally, until browned around the edges, about five minutes. Add the red pepper and garlic and cook another minute, stirring. Add the beans and cook, stirring, another minute on high heat to warm. Correct seasoning and serve immediately.
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No one is more on the cutting edge than you Stephen! So much so, you don't know it. And your blog is our delicious obsession.
Posted by: Amy | February 10, 2006 at 12:24 PM
I had no idea Jerusalem Artichoke were getting so trendy. They do taste fabulous though and they grow wild around here... the problem is that I find them extremely hard to clean and peel!
As for food trends in general... there is reason for most of them to be so short lived...
Posted by: Magictofu | February 10, 2006 at 04:13 PM
Yummy!
Posted by: Kathy | February 10, 2006 at 09:13 PM
needed a good recipe for jerusalem artichokes and here i find it! :) looks delicious!
Posted by: fiordizucca goes english | February 12, 2006 at 05:27 AM