Sweeter and nuttier than potatoes, Jerusalem artichokes, also known as topinambours, come into season around mid-October to early November. They often find their way into many fish and chicken dishes, taking the form of either a roasted side or a smooth purée. A particularly delightful way to showcase topinambour is through a velouté. Pairing it with roasted pears not only accentuates its natural sweetness but also creates a deliciously comforting dish perfect for the autumn season.
Jerusalem artichokes velouté
Course: Starter, MainCuisine: French, Modern BritishDifficulty: Easy4
servings15
minutes35
minutesThe gorgonzola dolce, mushroom and walnut bruschetta makes it a more complete meal.
Ingredients
- Pears
2 ripe pears, cored and cut in quarters
1tbsp olive oil
Salt
- Velouté
230g Jerusalem Artichoke, scrubbed and diced into 2cm cubes
1tbsp unsalted butter
2 bay leaves
½ tsp salt
285ml semi-skimmed milk
1.15l vegetable stock
- Toasts
2 pieces of bread
100g portobello mushrooms
2 sprigs of thyme
5 halves of walnuts
50g gorgonzola dolce
- Plating
A few walnut pieces, roasted and chopped
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Directions
- Pears
- Preheat the oven to 180C.
- Arrange the pears in an oven dish.
- Drizzle the olive oil, sprinkle with salt and toss the pears around to coat evenly.
- Roast them for 20min until the pears are tender and caramelised.
- Velouté
- In a large saucepan, melt the butter on medium heat.
- Add the Jerusalem artichokes, bay leaves and salt.
- Cook them until the colour becomes a nice golden brown, about 15-20min.
- Pour in the milk, vegetable stock and simmer for 5min until the vegetables are very soft.
- Take off the heat and fish out the bay leaves.
- Using the immersion blender, blend until silky smooth.
- Toasts
- Preheat the oven to 210C. Cut the mushrooms into 1cm slices.
- Sautée them in a small pan over a high heat.
- Add the thyme leaves, season with salt and pepper.
- Arrange the mushrooms on the toasts, crumble gorgonzola and sprinkle with chopped walnuts.
- Bake until the cheese melts a bit and the bread crisps up.
- Plating
- Serve 2-3 ladles of the soup in a bowl, arrange two halves of pears.
- Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle the walnuts. Serve with warm mushroom toasts.
