Caramelized Sunchokes With Beet Confit Food

ROASTED BEETS WITH CRISPY SUNCHOKES AND PICKLED ORANGE-GINGER PURéE

Steps:

• Pickled Orange-Ginger Purée:
• Place the zest strips in a small saucepan and cover with water. Bring the water to a boil, then drain. Repeat this process two more times (blanching the orange zest removes any bitter flavors). Place the ginger and orange zest in a jar or heatproof container. In a saucepan, bring the lime juice, vinegar, sugar, and ¾ teaspoon salt to a boil. Pour over the ginger and orange. Let cool to room temperature, then cover and refrigerate overnight. The pickled ginger can be refrigerated for a couple of months.
• Drain the pickled ginger and orange and save 3 tablespoons of the pickling liquid. Add both to a blender or mini food processor, along with the olive oil, chile, and remaining 2 tablespoons salt. Blend until very smooth, scraping down the side of the blender as needed. Transfer to a container and refrigerate until ready to use. The puree can be made a couple of days ahead. (Makes about 1 cup.)
• Roasted beets:
• Preheat the oven to 375°F. Place the beets in a baking dish (if using a mix of red and golden beets, separate them into two smaller dishes and divide the oil, vinegar, and water between the two dishes). Drizzle with the oil and add the water and vinegar. Season with salt and pepper. Cover the pan with foil and roast until the beets are tender when pierced with a knife; this can take anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour, depending on the thickness of the beets. Let the beets cool, then peel and cut into 1-inch wedges. Place each color of beet, along with any accumulated juices, into a small mixing bowl.
• Toasted cashews:
• In a skillet, heat the oil over medium-low heat. Add the cashews and cook, stirring constantly, until golden brown. Transfer to a heat-proof bowl.
• Sunchoke chips:
• Pour 1 inch of oil into a small saucepan and add the sunchokes (there should be just enough oil to cover the sunchokes; add more oil if needed). Turn the heat to medium and stir occasionally; when the sunchokes begin to sizzle and foam, increase the temperature to high and continue frying, stirring constantly, until the sunchokes are light golden brown. At this point the sunchokes will rapidly go from golden brown to burnt, so quickly transfer the chips to paper towels to drain. Lightly season with salt. The sunchoke chips can be stored in an airtight container at room temperature for a day or two, or until they start to soften. (Makes about ½ cup.)
• For serving:
• Using a sharp knife, cut the peel and pith off the orange. Working over a bowl, cut the orange between the membranes to release the segments. Dice the segments, then return them to the bowl.
• Drizzle the beet wedges with a little bit of olive oil, season with salt, and toss.
• Spread the ginger puree on the bottom of a shallow serving bowl or plate. Arrange the beets over the puree. Sprinkle the chopped orange segments over the beets and grind some pepper over the dish. Top with the cashews, herbs, and sunchoke chips. Serve.

ROASTED SUNCHOKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425° Fahrenheit (220°C) with a rack in the center position. In a medium bowl, toss the sunchokes slices with the olive oil, salt, and pepper until well coated. Distribute the sunchokes, cut-side down in an even, thin layer on a half sheet pan. Be sure to leave space between them, as this will help them caramelize evenly.
• Roast for 18 to 22 minutes, flipping the pieces halfway through, or until the sunchokes are lightly caramelized and fork tender.
• Gently toss the roasted sunchokes with freshly chopped thyme leaves and a light sprinkle of kosher salt. I like to drizzle them lightly with extra virgin olive oil before serving, but this is optional. Serve immediately.

CARAMELIZED SUNCHOKES WITH BEET CONFIT

Steps:

• Heat oven to 400 degrees. Place the beets in a baking dish and toss with just enough olive oil to coat. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and add apple cider and thyme sprigs to the pan. Cover with foil and bake for 1 hour 30 minutes to 2 hours, removing the foil after an hour to allow the pan juices to reduce. Let beets cool in cooking liquid.
• Meanwhile, in another baking pan, toss the sunchokes with just enough olive oil to coat and season with salt and pepper. Add a tablespoon of water to the bottom of the pan and cover tightly with foil. Bake in the same oven as the beets for 30 to 45 minutes, or until tender. Let cool.
• To make the beet dressing, whisk together 3 tablespoons of the beet cooking liquid, the apple cider vinegar, mustard, ginger and walnut oil. Season with salt to taste.
• Peel beets using a paper towels to rub off the skins. Coarsely chop the beets and place in a salad bowl. Toss the beets with the dressing.
• Heat a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Add grapeseed oil to the depth of 3/4 inch. Once the oil is hot, fry sunchokes in batches until crisp. Drain on paper towels. Toss the fried sunchokes in a medium bowl with honey and rosemary. Season with salt.
• To serve, spread the beets on a platter and top with the warm sunchokes. Sprinkle with herbs if using.

BEET CARPACCIO

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• Tightly wrap beets in double layers of foil to make 3 packages (2 large beets or 4 medium per package) and roast on a baking sheet in middle of oven until tender, 1 1/4 to 1 1/2 hours. Cool to warm in foil packages (the steam makes beets easier to peel), about 30 minutes.
• While beets are roasting, cook onions in butter in a 12-inch heavy skillet, covered, over moderately low heat, stirring occasionally, until soft, about 20 minutes. Add salt, sugar, and vinegar and cook, uncovered, stirring occasionally, until onions are very tender and caramelized to deep brown, about 20 minutes more. Add wine and boil, stirring occasionally, until liquid is reduced to about 2 tablespoons, 3 to 5 minutes. Transfer mixture to a food processor and pulse to a coarse purée. Return to skillet and season with salt and pepper, then reheat onion marmalade, covered, over low heat.
• While marmalade is reheating, peel beets, discarding stems and root ends, and cut crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick slices with slicer.
• Divide warm marmalade among 6 dinner plates and spread evenly in a very thin layer to cover bottom of each plate using offset spatula. Arrange beet slices in 1 layer over onion, overlapping them only enough to cover onions. Drizzle 2 teaspoons oil over each serving and season with pepper. Shave 4 to 6 curls of Parmigiano-Reggiano with a vegetable peeler over beets on each plate. Serve immediately.
• Available at many cookware stores and Uwajimaya (800-899-1928).