Originally Posted By: twosleepy

I always wondered about those 'chokes. Has anyone eaten them, or does anyone eat them regularly? I'd love to try a recipe, just for fun.
"parar" ("to stop") or "para" ("for"). Both make sense. It must be the same as for "parasol". It's interesting that our English word, umbrella, is used almost exclusively (in the US) for rain, but the name does not refer to rain or water, but instead to shade. :0)

Parasol (online ety.)
1616, from Fr. parasol (1580), from It. parasole, lit. "protection from the sun," from para- "defense against" (from verb parere "to ward off") + sole "sun," from L. solem (nom. sol).

As for Jerusalem Artichoke (helianthus tuberosus) (aardpeer or topinambour [D.] ), it’s funny that it has nothing to do with Jerusalem nor Artichoke except for the faint nutty artichoke-like taste.
I had them in my garden for years. Although they never flowered they gave a good amount of roots.You can prepare them just cooked until à point - done and nothing much added, but any creamed mild sauce will do it good because the taste is not very exciting. Considered healthy.