Growing up, Bethie and I wanted stuffed artichokes for our birthday dinner. They were so much fun to eat, and they were definitely a special treat for us. Unfortunately, I never really paid attention to how to make them. Here's a recipe I found at cooks.com.
STUFFING:
6 oz. grated Parmesan cheese
1 sm. can rolled anchovies, finely chopped (optional)
4 cloves garlic, mashed
4 to 5 oz. olive oil
Put a small amount of water in the container, but do not let the water touch the artichokes. cover and steam slowly, adding several drops of imported olive oil over stuffing about every 15 minutes. Continue to steam until artichokes are done when the leaves pull out easily, almost one hour. The secret to this recipe is in the use of the olive oil. DO NOT USE TOO MUCH!
RESULTS: Poor Chris has never had a stuffed artichoke before and was a little befuddled by it, but I thought it turned out great. I had some trouble finding the right temperature for steaming. Telling me to "steam it slowly" is unhelpful. I put the pot on the smaller back burner on low, and they still weren't done after 90 minutes, so I put them on the front burner on medium, and they were done in 10 minutes. I think it might be a trial and error sort of thing.
- Artichokes and cardoons are members of the thistle family
- the part of the artichoke that we eat is actually the flower.
- In the US, the peak artichoke season is March through May, with a second peak season in fall.
- Artichokes, though associated with Italian cooking, were originally developed for cooking in the Muslim world.
2 comments:
What you grew up on did not include Parmesan or anchovies. And since I rarely had garlic cloves in the house I used garlic powder. (I know. Italians are supposed to have them hanging around - literally.)
Also, my artichokes (and my mother's) were set in the water not on a rack. We basted the artichokes periodically with the water from the bottom of the Dutch oven. It seemed to work fine.
Now I'm lazy about the length of time it takes them to cook and I microwave them. They are not as tasty but it is faster.
Mom
Oh yes, I definitely did not put anchovies in there. I'd be lying if I said I wasn't curious, but they seem like a slimy hassle.
I saw some other recipies that called for putting the artichokes in the water, too, not on a rack, so there seem to be at least two schools of thought on artichoke cooking. :)
Post a Comment