While the Jerusalem Artichoke is neither from Jerusalem nor actually an artichoke, it does add a wonderful new flavor to the traditional latke. Jerusalem Artichokes are sort of funny looking—they look like fresh ginger or small tuber potatoes. They blend nicely with the other flavors in this recipe, and if you want to give them a try on their own, they are delicious peeled, chunked, and sautéed or roasted with meats.

These latkes are mashed instead of shredded. They puff up nicely and taste great fresh and after being reheated in the oven, which makes them a good choice if you want to prepare in advance.

The idea with these latkes is to add new vegetables to your traditional shredded potato latke recipe. Here we used parsnips and sweet potatoes, but you can also try green zucchini, squash, and beets (if you don’t mind cleaning up a big purple mess).

Risotto is definitely a bit of work, but it’s well worth it. The risotto is rich and creamy without being full of fat. This particular combination of flavors reminds me of summer. You can substitute many different flavors for the artichokes, such as asparagus, green peas and leeks. Risotto is a really great dish to make when cooking with someone else because you can alternate the stirring job.