Sunchokes

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It is Sunchoke season!

It's amazing, but very few locals would know what we're talking about. Also commonly known as Jerusalem Artichokes, they are sold as very expensive "exotic" food in the "big city".

Our first harvest of the year.

The reason we are amazed is that this wonderful food is actually indigenous to Niagara. You can often see these beautiful tall yellow flowers growing in the ditches between here and Simcoe county. They were at one time a great source of food for the native Canadians (Samuel de Champlain discovered native crops in 1605)....and yet now, few locals even know they exist.

Sunchokes in bloom

A distant cousin to the Sunflower, the Sunchoke grows tall and generates a daisy-like yellow bloom. The edible portion of the plant is the tuber.

In this area, once planted, these flowers can quickly overtake a patch of land (this is why we've tried to contain them in raised beds). They literally grow like weeds....and this is why we like them so much. They require little care and year after year will produce much more than you can consume. One tuber can generate from 70 to 200 tubers by harvesting time (mid to late Fall).

Growing your own Sunchokes is a "breeze", but there are quite a few other reasons anyone local may want these in their backyard. First they are rich in potassium, iron, niacin, thiamine, phosphorous and copper; they are also a good source of dietary fibre. And yet, they are low in starch or carbohydrates (1 cup amounts to just over 110 calories!) and can replace potatoes in just about every recipe. You simply need to avoid overcooking them as then tend to go "mushy".

The taste is similar to potato although the texture is not starchy. It does have a resemblance to Artichoke although perhaps less sweet or nutty.

Here at the farm, we will definitely be making some Sunchoke soup for the Tea Room, but we also enjoy them pickled and these we will also be serving with some of our menu items. There are many recipes for this vegetable and we thought we would embed a video giving everyone a feel for how these might be used: Tapas by the Perennial Plate.

So what are the drawbacks?

First the roots are ginger-like, meaning they are difficult to wash or peel. Luckily most recipes work well without the need for peeling.

Second and perhaps most importantly is their high content of "Inulin". Inulin is not digestible and everyone will be familiar with its effect when we'll just say the other vegetables high in Inulin  are beans :).....As a warning, Sunchokes can have as much as 5 times more Inulin than beans!

There are ways to overcome the issues of Inulin in Sunchokes; this involves marinating or storing the roots for a period of time. The best way is to simply gather the tubers after a few frosts. The more frosts these tubers are subjected to, the more Inulin is transformed into sugars.

Finally, the roots do not keep well for a long time (unlike potatoes). The ideal storage method is to simply keep them in the ground until you are ready to use them.

Having said this, we do hope more locals will plant Sunchokes. They will generate good, healthy food, year after year....and if you grow them yourself, it's free!

Elsewhere on the farm, it was time for a photo shoot. The old manor is going to be featured in the next Niagara edition of Our Homes magazine. For those wishing to get a glimpse of our home, now that it has been fully restored, this article should give everyone a good feel for what was accomplished.

The old manor under the spotlight

Meanwhile in the Tea Room, Christmas decorations are already going up! We're preparing for our Open House on the 6th and 7th of November. Everyone is invited and there will be some free tastings!

"Decking the halls" for the Tea Room Open House (Nov 6 &7)

We'll finally close this blog entry with a view of the amazing Fall colours which now form the backdrop for our Growing Dome.