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ITALIAN RECIPES

It's artichoke season!

Potatoes and Artichokes

Ingredients:

4 medium sized potatoes, peeled and sliced into bite-sized pieces
8 medium-sized artichokes
2 tablespoons minced parsley
2 tablespoons olive oil
About a half a teaspoon of salt and a dash of pepper
1/2 cup of water
A pressure cooker

Preparation:

Wash the artichokes, and stem them. Slice the tops off the artichokes and pull off the outer leaves, till you get to the white inner leaves. If the upper parts of these white leaves look dark and fibrous, trim them off. Then quarter the artichokes and remove the fuzz, if there is any, from the hearts.
Peel the artichoke stems.

Put all the ingredients into the pressure cooker, and cook for 15 minutes. Open the pressure after the steam's blown off, check seasoning, and continue to cook till the liquid's reduced.
Serves 4.

Sicilian Baked Artichoke

Ingredients:

12 artichokes
2 ounces (weight; 50 g, or 1/8 pound) onions, minced
1/2 cup (50 g) bread crumbs
3 cloves garlic, minced
A bunch of parsley, minced
6 salted anchovy filets, rinsed and boned
Olive oil, salt, and pepper
Grated pecorino (optional)
The juice of a lemon

Preparation:

Remove and discard the tough outer leaves of the artichokes, then trim their points, cut the bases off flat, and put them to soak in salted water to which you have added the lemon juice for about an hour; while they're soaking trim away the ridged "bark" of the stems, cut them into inch-long pieces, and add them to the artichokes.

Mince the other ingredients that need it, and combine them all in a bowl, seasoning the filling to taste with salt.
Drain the artichokes, spread the petals with your fingers, and slip the filling between the petals with the aid of a spoon.

Set the stuffed artichokes in a pan, put the pieces of stem between them, drizzle well with olive oil, and add enough cold water to reach half way up the artichokes. Dust with more salt and pepper to taste, set the pan over a medium flame, and simmer the artichokes for about an hour, adding a little more water to the pan if need be to keep them from drying out.
Serves 4-6.

Stuffed artichokes

Ingredients:

See below

Preparation:

Wash your artichokes well, remove the tough outer leaves until you reach the lighter colored tender inner leaves, and then cut the stem off flush (reserve it), so the artichoke will stand up.
Using a knife, cut the point of the artichoke off flat at the height of the tips of the outermost leaves (this does away with the spiny tips of the leaves), then core it, removing the innermost leaves (just the innermost leaves above the heart) and any fuzz there may be in the center of the artichoke heart.

Set aside the leaves removed, but discard the fuzz. Next, spread the remaining leaves of the artichoke a bit with your fingers, and set your cored artichoke and the reserved leaves to soak in a bowl of water with the juice of a lemon squeezed into it to keep the it from darkening.

Continue with the next artichoke; when you've finished coring the artichokes, take the stems; if you look at a freshly cut surface you will see that the heart is lighter, and surrounded by a ring of darker green. Trim away the green outer parts, which are bitter. Julienne the white inner stems and add them to the reserved leaves and heart.

Take the stems and inner leaves, and add to them two ounces (50 g) julienned pancetta, two ounces (50 g) grated Fontina cheese, a quarter pound (100 g) ground beef, and a bunch of minced parsley. Season the mixture to taste with salt and pepper (because of the pancetta, not much salt should be necessary), then knead a beaten egg into it.

When you stuff the artichokes, spread the leaves like the petals of a flower and gently press the stuffing between them as well as into the central cavity.
Put a quarter cup of olive oil to heat in the pressure cooker and add the artichokes, being careful that they stand upright. Let them cook for a couple of minutes, then add about an inch of boiling water or broth, put the lid on the pressure cooker, and cook under pressure for twenty minutes.

Turn off the flame and open the safety valve.
When it's safe, open the pressure cooker and continue cooking, shifting them about often lest they stick and burn, until the remaining liquid has evaporated; serve.

Fried Artichokes

Ingredients:

6 artichokes (they should be firm and feel solid)
Salt
The juice of 1/2 a lemon
Flour
An egg, lightly beaten
Oil for frying

Preparation:

Squeeze the lemon into a bowl of water, drop the rind into the bowl, and add a pinch of salt and a little bit of flour (not enough to make a paste).
Peel away the tough outer leaves of the artichokes, trim the tops perpendicular to the length of the artichokes, and cut the artichokes into eighths. Soak them in the acidulated water for an hour.

Then rinse them, pat them dry, flour them, dredge them in the egg, and fry them until crisp and golden in hot, but not really hot oil (you don't want the outside to burn before the inside is cooked).
Serves 6.

Buon appetito!

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