Another chilly day, another soup meal!
The black bean & sweetcorn soup is a favourite in the Thrifty household. It’s simple and cheap to make, very healthy and — of course — delicious.
We served the soup with a few slices of baguette, as well as a small plate of roasted Jerusalem artichokes and potatoes.
If you’ve never had Jerusalem artichokes, I suppose the best way of describing the taste is like a sunflower-flavoured potato. The texture — when roasted at least — is very creamy. Although I only tried them for the first time last year, they are now one of my favourite vegetables.
Jerusalem artichokes are not commonly found in shops, though I have seen them in the past at Sainsburys. We grew them this year at our allotment, and I can say with absolute certainty that we will be growing them from now on. Ours grew to an impressive 12 feet high! In case you’re wondering about the name, Jerusalem artichokes have nothing to do with Jerusalem, and are not related to globe artichokes; they are in the same family as sunflowers.
But back to the kitchen. The Jerusalem artichokes were peeled, then halved and roasted in coconut oil. They cook more quickly than potatoes, so if you are cooking them with potatoes, be sure to parboil the spuds first.