I plan to dig a mountain of Jerusalem artichokes tomorrow, to take to Sibella’s flea market on Saturday, along with my favourite recipe for Jerusalem artichoke soup. We joke that the letter ‘f’ should be placed before the word artichoke when it’s the Jerusalem variety, but I can only suggest you share this delicious soup with good friends! The recipe is one I gleaned from an abc radio interview with Alex Herbert a few years ago and she declared she is happy for me to continue to pass it on….
I’ve had a lovely time separating the amaranth seed from chaff….and now the kitchen smells like a glorious spring day! The result is a very satisfying mound of seed, ready to pour into little bags at the market on Saturday morning. (I know this sounds like child’s play, but I’m having fun!).
I also have a veritable sea of sorrel leaves drying on tea towels on the kitchen bench, ready to make into pistou later this afternoon. I usually only make it for Kitchen Gardening or Cooking Days (or for us) but I’m hoping to get at least enough for a couple of jars to take to market on Saturday….we’ll see! Making it was an experiment I tried on the spur of the moment a few years ago, and it’s so scrumptious with so many different things – eggs, chicken, fish, lamb, or on its own with home made bread – yum, or folded through pasta….I keep a bowl on the go in the fridge all the time. If you can get your hands on some sorrel plants yourself, it’s one of the toughest and easiest leafy greens you can grow.