I first tastedsunchokes – aka Jerusalem artichokes– at Fleur de Sel, the charming, now-sadly-closed French restaurant in New York City where I learned to cook under chef Cyril Renaud. There, Chef taught me to cut the bumpy, funny-looking tubers into paper-thin slices on a mandoline, and then fry them in olive oil. They became lightly sweet, nutty little sunchoke chips that we used to garnish a delicious scallop dish.

Since then, I’veroastedand mashed sunchokes at home with great results. They love cream and butter, and I love their delicate, potato-ish flavor. When I saw that Cathy atnoteatingoutinny.comsubbed sunchokes for potatoes in aGerman potato salad recipe, I was impressed. What a great idea! I only wish I had seen her blog before Thanksgiving… that salad would have been a huge hit at our table.