Black Dirt Region Jerusalem Artichokes

Also known as Sunchokes. The Jerusalem Artichoke is not an artichoke; it's the crisp, delicately sweet tuber of an Italian sunflower. Its texture is crispy, like jicama and water chestnuts, and it has the earthiness of a real artichoke. Eat raw or use as a substitute for potatoes. The thin skin is edible, so don't work too hard peeling it. The Black Dirt Region, spanning southern Orange County, New York and northern Sussex County, New Jersey, is home to family-owned farms situated on thousands of acres of deep, richly organic soil — the result of ancient glaciers melting, river overflow and plant decay. The lush valley is best known for its production of the prized "black-dirt onion," as well as other root vegetables.