Caramelized Sunchokes with Beet Confit

Ingredients

• 3 pounds red beets
• trimmed and scrubbed
• Olive oil
• as needed
• Kosher salt and black pepper
• to taste
• 2 cups apple cider or juice
• 2 sprigs of thyme
• 2 pounds sunchokes (Jerusalem artichokes)
• peeled and diced into 1/2-inch cubes
• 3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
• 1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1 teaspoon grated ginger root
• 3 tablespoons walnut oil
• Grapeseed or safflower oil
• as needed for frying
• 2 tablespoons honey
• preferably wildflower
• 1 teaspoon chopped fresh rosemary
• 1/4 cup wood or regular sorrel
• or celery leaves or parsley
• for garnish (optional)

Instructions

1. Heat oven to 400 degrees.
2. Place the beets in a baking dish and toss with just enough olive oil to coat.
3. Sprinkle with salt and pepper and add apple cider and thyme sprigs to the pan.
4. 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.
5. Let beets cool in cooking liquid.
6. Meanwhile, in another baking pan, toss the sunchokes with just enough olive oil to coat and season with salt and pepper.
7. Add a tablespoon of water to the bottom of the pan and cover tightly with foil.
8. Bake in the same oven as the beets for 30 to 45 minutes, or until tender.
9. Let cool.
10. To make the beet dressing, whisk together 3 tablespoons of the beet cooking liquid, the apple cider vinegar, mustard, ginger and walnut oil.
11. Season with salt to taste.
12. Peel beets using a paper towels to rub off the skins.
13. Coarsely chop the beets and place in a salad bowl.
14. Toss the beets with the dressing.
15. Heat a large saute pan over medium-high heat.
16. Add grapeseed oil to the depth of 3/4 inch.
17. Once the oil is hot, fry sunchokes in batches until crisp.
18. Drain on paper towels.
19. Toss the fried sunchokes in a medium bowl with honey and rosemary.
20. Season with salt.
21. To serve, spread the beets on a platter and top with the warm sunchokes.
22. Sprinkle with herbs if using.