Stuffed Artichokes

What I love most about eating, cooking, looking at recipes, and talking to other people about food is that no matter how much I think I know about food I always learn something new. I recently spoke with someone who was planning on cooking stuffed artichokes for dinner and I tried to imagine what she was talking about. Stuffing an artichoke? I'd never seen or heard of anyone doing this before but after a simple Google search I discovered that lots of people eat stuffed artichokes and I decided I had to try it for myself. I've never been a huge fan of artichokes, I've only cooked it once, maybe twice at home. I thought it was too much work for such a little reward. A little meat at the end of an inedible leaf and only one heart per artichoke? Jarred artichokes in the supermarket are handy but taste weird, nothing at all like a freshly prepared artichoke hearts.

A few tips will help your final dish really stand out. When choosing an artichoke look for leaves that are tightly packed together; separated leaves means the artichoke is getting old and losing moisture. Choose medium sized artichokes that seem heavy for its size. To clean the artichoke, and make sure no critters hitch a ride into your dinner, fill a large bowl full of cold water and agitate the artichoke under water, holding it upside down by its stem.

One of the things I learned from browsing recipes is that there are a lot of different ways to do it. You can cook it in the oven or on the stove top or even in a pressure cooker if you happen to own one. The ingredients certainly varied but the bones of the recipes were breadcrumbs and cheese. I highly recommend using fresh breadcrumbs as opposed to the prepackaged stuff. The recipe I liked the best came from Epicurious but it has a bit of Anne Burrell too. It's a tad time consuming but really fun to make. First, you make a delicious stuffing of breadcrumbs, cheese, parsley and anchovies (you can use Italian sausage too) and stuff it in the center and in between each leaf of the artichoke. The hard work consists of trimming the artichoke itself. The purple leaves in the center are pokey! It reminded me of an alien mouth with its many layers of leaves. But all the hard work is worth the effort, look at this beauty!

After a 50 minute cook time in a simmering concoction these babies are done and ready to eat. You'll pull apart each leaf and bite off the succulent stuffing and bit of artichoke at the end and discard the leaves. The heart itself is hands down the best part. Take a big bite of the center with a spoonful of stuffing and you'll know what I mean. 

This would be a great dish to make if you were hosting something like, oh.. I don't know.. a bunco party? Wouldn't all your friends be so impressed to see this as your appetizer? What makes it such a party friendly dish is that it can be stuffed up to 1 day ahead so all you have to do is cook them up and throw them on a platter. That's what easy entertaining is all about! Your girlfriends will rave about it, it's the highlight of the party! Well.. maybe not, but give it a try anyway.

An inside look. You'll serve your artichokes whole of course.

Stuffed Artichokes

Serves 4-6 as an appetizer

Stuffing 

1 1/4 cup fine fresh bread crumbs from an Italian loaf

1 cup grated Parmigiano-Reggiano

3 tablespoons finely chopped garlic (5 cloves) 

1/2 bunch finely chopped flat-leaf parsley 

3 anchovy fillets (or dried Italian sausage)

1 cup finely chopped provolone cheese

1/4 cup olive oil

Artichokes 

2 medium artichokes

1 lemon, halved 

1 cup water, divided 

1 cup reduced-sodium chicken broth, divided 

1 cup olive oil, divided 

1 tablespoon finely chopped garlic, divided

Stuffing
Preheat oven to 350°F with rack in middle.

Spread bread crumbs in a shallow baking pan and toast in oven, stirring, until pale golden, about 10 minutes. Cool completely, then toss with parmesan, garlic, parsley, anchovies, provolone, 1 teaspoon salt, and 1/2 teaspoon pepper in a bowl. Drizzle oil over crumbs and toss to coat.

Trim and stuff artichokes
Cut off artichoke stems and set aside. Cut off top 1/2 inch of 1 artichoke with a serrated knife, then cut about inch off all remaining leaf tips with kitchen shears. Rub cut leaves with a lemon half.

Separate leaves slightly with your thumbs, then pull out purple leaves from center and enough yellow ones to expose fuzzy choke. Scoop out choke with a melon-ball cutter or small spoon, then squeeze some juice from other lemon half into cavity. Repeat with remaining artichoke.

Spoon about 2 tablespoons stuffing into cavity of each artichoke and, starting with bottom leaves and spreading leaves open as much as possible without breaking, spoon a rounded teaspoon stuffing between each leaf.

Cook artichokes
Put 1/2 cup water, 1/2 cup broth, 1/4 cup oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons garlic, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/8 teaspoon pepper in a large pot and arrange the artichokes in liquid in 1 layer. Drizzle with olive oil.

Simmer artichokes, covered, until leaves are tender, about 50 minutes. Transfer cooked artichokes, along with any liquid, to a shallow bowl and keep warm, loosely covered with foil.

Transfer artichokes with tongs to shallow soup bowls and spoon cooking liquid around them.

Cooks' notes:

· Stuffing can be made 3 days ahead and chilled, covered.
· Artichokes can be stuffed (but not cooked) 1 day ahead and chilled, covered.
· Stuffed artichokes can be cooked 4 hours ahead and reheated in a microwave oven.
· Place artichokes under the broil for a final finish to brown the crust and give a nice presentation.



 

 

Time for a Drink

It seems like its been awhile since a drink has been featured on "All Sauced UP" and what is this blog if not an advocate for having a cocktail at 3:00 on a Monday? Not working regular business days, the 'ol Monday through Friday, 9-5 has its pros and cons like most things in life. So before you judge me for being a lush on a Monday afternoon consider that I fell asleep on Friday and Saturday well before midnight completely sober after working all day.

Today is one of my days off this week so why not celebrate with a Moscow Mule? When I mentioned needing ginger beer for this cocktail Joel asked "is that a new thing?" In recent conversation he heard two different people mention liking ginger beer and he had never heard of it. Alas, ginger beer has been around for a LONG time. The Moscow Mule was created sometime in the 1950's and it's a simple cocktail that is delicious and refreshing, something perfect to quench your thirst on a warm Monday afternoon.

Ginger beer is simply a stronger form of ginger ale, and no you don't need to be over 21 to buy it. It's called beer because it's brewed, not because of its alcohol content. So even if you're not in the mood for a drink consider picking some up simply because it's delicious and refreshing on its own. The Moscow Mule got it's name because Americans in the 1950's thought of Russia when they thought of vodka and who knows how to stereotype better than American's?

These directions are simply a guideline, I always use my own eyeball for pouring myself a drink just how I like it.


Moscow Mule
Serves 1

3 oz. vodka (about 3 tablespoons)
1/2 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2/3 cup ginger beer

Fill a tall glass with ice cubes. Add vodka, lime juice, and ginger beer. Garnish with a lime wedge. Enjoy.

The Morel of the Story

 

I love discovering and cooking with foods I've never tried before, I give the credit to my parents who introduced me to a wide range of cuisines as a child. I learned not to be afraid to try things I'd never thought of eating before. It also helped that I had a Vietnamese grandmother who is well regarded even 12 years after her passing for her amazing skills in the kitchen. The lesson? Give your kids a varied diet, they only like mac & cheese because that's all you serve! Throw in some sushi and Indian curry and give them a sophisticated palate at an early age. That is the only parenting advice I'll offer on this blog, I'm actually slightly allergic to children.

Anyway, as I was browsing the produce section at work I saw that our morel mushrooms were on sale for $9.99 a deep discount from the regular price of $14.99. I recalled an episode I saw recently on the Food Network where Anne Burrell cooked morel mushrooms with fresh spring vegetables and how amazing it looked. With the price of these mushrooms it's no wonder I've never tried them before, but the sale price had me putting these fungi in my basket.

Pairing these mushrooms with fresh spring vegetables that are in season is a must. I chose fava beans (another first for me), green beans, and asparagus. Eating vegetables that are in season gives them so much more flavor, plus its more likely to be sourced locally which supports the farmers in your area and that's important!

This recipe is perfect if your having people over and don't want to spend all your time in the kitchen. The vegetables can be blanched well ahead of time and only need to be sauteed briefly before serving. You can even serve the final product at room temperature, it's just as tasty. I'm drawn to recipes that are easy to prepare, I went through a 5 year stage where I only wanted to cook gourmet meals that took hours and hours to prepare and minutes to eat, and while I still respect the time it takes to make some dishes, mainly I just want something quick, easy, and delicious. This certainly fits the bill..

Adapted from a recipe by Anne Burrell
Sauteed Spring Veggies w/ Morel Mushrooms
Serves 6 

1 bunch asparagus, ends trimmed
2 cups green beans, ends removed
1 cup shelled fava beans
2 tablespoons butter
3 garlic cloves
1 cup morel mushrooms, rinsed and cut lengthwise in quarters
1/2 cup chicken or vegetable stock
salt

Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, fill a large bowl with ice water and salt it well. Place the vegetables in the boiling water in small batches for 3 minutes and place it immediately in the ice water. Blanch the fava beans last since their iron content turns the water black. After the beans are cooled, remove the tough outer skin. Leave the veggies in the ice bath long enough to cool them completely, if they are warm on the inside your spring veggies will continue to cook and turn mushy.

Melt butter in a large saute pan. Crush the garlic and remove the outer layer and add to the saute pan. Bring the pan to a medium high heat. When the garlic has become golden brown and aromatic remove it from the pan and discard it. This gives the veggies a hint of garlic without overpowering the final dish. Add the mushrooms and stock, season with salt, and saute for 1 minute. Add the prepared veggies, season with salt and saute until all the ingredients are coated with butter and hot and almost all the stock has evaporated. Serve immediately or later at room temperature.