Not an artichoke and not from Jerusalem

Sharon enjoyed a delicious birthday dinner at the guest house of her sister Deborah, with local salt marsh lamb and fresh vegetables.

Deborah had been out earlier in the day digging up the small tubers of Jerusalem artichokes from her vegetable patch at Hillcrest House, Wigtown, Scotland. These had survived the deep frosts and heavy snows of recent months without any problems at all. Debs scrubbed them and roasted them together with potatoes which were served with the lamb, and Sharon's favourite creamed leeks.

The Jerusalem artichokes were delicious – and nothing like the traditional artichoke, which is a thistle head. The vegetable is native to the eastern parts of the United States and the French found it being cultivated there by the native peoples in about 1605. One suggestion for the confusing name is that subsequent waves of immigrants from Italy and Spain arrived and enthusiastically adopted the root into their cooking. The plant grows very tall and looks like a sunflower. That is because it is a form of sunflower. And in both Italian and Spanish the word for sunflower is “girasol.” If you say it fast this could be mistaken for “Jerusalem.” Why it is called an “artichoke” when it is nothing like it remains a mystery.

The tubers are knobbly and look a bit like a ginger root. Apparently, the plant is very easy to grow and the flowers are very attractive.

On the technical front, the Jerusalem artichoke is high in iron, with plenty of niacin, thiamine, phosphorous and copper. However, in some people it causes problem with wind. Perhaps this is because its tubers contain inlulin rather than starch.

Everything is delicious at Hillcrest House and the slow-roasted lamb is outstanding. Deborah cooks it in the oven in a large lidded pot. The pot has a rack which covers the bottom and raises the meat a few inches. Into the pot went the lamb, fresh herbs from the garden, and a bottle of good red Spanish wine. For Sharon's dinner this was Posada del Rey, or guest house of the king. The label informs that Benedictine monks took over this building in the 19th century and established a distillery. In 1959 it was converted into a winery and the wines are made using the best grapes and traditional techniques. “Pousada del Rey has an intense, glowing and cherry colour, aromas of dark berry fruits and a long, velvety finish. We enjoy this wine with garlic-roasted lamb or a simple dish of Cameros goat's cheese and olives.”

Hillcrest House, Maidland Place, Station Road, Wigtown, Dumfries and Galloway, Scotland, DG8 9EU. Telephone: 01988 402018. www.hillcrest-wigtown.co.uk; info@hillcrest-wigtown.co.uk.

www.sharonskitchenworld.blogspot.com

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