By LANIE PIMENTEL
petunia5043(at)gmail.com

The artichoke, according to Wikipedia.org< is a perennial thistle originating in southern Europe around the Mediterranean. The flowers develop in a large head from an edible bud about 8–15 cm diameter with numerous triangular scales; the individual florets are purple. The edible portion of the buds consists primarily of the fleshy lower portions of the involucral bracts and the base, known as the “heart”; the mass of inedible immature florets in the center of the bud are called the “choke.”

Although an artichoke may look intimidating to make, it’s a lot easier than you think. Follow these simple directions provided by EatingWell.com:

Trim leaves from the top of an artichoke.

I saw Giada make this recipe the other day on her show Everyday Italian, and this recipe inspired this week’s article! It sounded too delicious not to spread the word.

Baked Artichokes with Gorgonzola and Herbs
Recipe courtesy Giada De Laurentiis

Salt
4 artichokes
3 lemons, plus 1 lemon
10 ounces mild Gorgonzola cheese, room temperature
2 tablespoons cream
2 teaspoons chopped fresh thyme leaves
2 teaspoons chopped fresh parsley leaves, plus 1 tablespoon
1 clove garlic, minced
1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
3 tablespoons bread crumbs
1 tablespoon olive oil

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Trim the artichokes by cutting off the top 1-inch or so. Cut the stem close to the base of the artichoke so the artichoke can sit up straight, and remove some of the bottom leaves. Using kitchen shears, trim the sharp points off of any remaining outer leaves. Add the artichokes to the boiling water. Halve the lemons and squeeze the juice into the boiling water. Toss in the lemons. Cook the artichokes until tender, about 30 minutes. Drain the artichokes and let cool.

Meanwhile, in a small bowl stir together the Gorgonzola, cream, thyme, 2 teaspoons parsley, garlic, salt, and pepper. In another small bowl stir together the bread crumbs and remaining 1 tablespoon of parsley.

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F. Remove the center choke of the artichokes using a small spoon. Stuff the cheese mixture into the center of the artichokes. Place the artichokes into a baking dish. Sprinkle the bread crumb mixture over the top of the artichokes. Drizzle the tops of the artichokes with olive oil. Bake until the artichokes are heated through, the cheese is melted, and the bread crumbs are crisp and golden, about 25 minutes. Transfer the artichokes to a serving dish and serve.

Emeril Lagasse is not usually a chef I mention too much because I hardly find his recipes easy to prepare. This recipe was an exception!

Savory Spinach and Artichoke Bread Pudding
Recipe courtesy Emeril Lagase

1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 1/2 pounds spinach, washed (3 cups cooked and roughly chopped)
2 cups chopped yellow onions
1 tablespoon roughly chopped garlic
1 tablespoon plus 2 teaspoons Italian seasoning
2 1/2 teaspoons salt
1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper
3 (8 1/2-ounce) cans quartered artichoke hearts, tough outer leaves removed
6 large eggs
3 cups heavy cream
2 cups milk
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
12 to 14 cups cubed (1-inch) day-old French bread (about 1 loaf)
1 pound Brie, rind removed and cut into 1/2-inch cubes, optional
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
1/4 cup minced fresh parsley leaves
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. Grease a 9 by 13-inch baking dish with 1 tablespoon olive oil. 

Bring a medium pot of water to a boil. Add the spinach and cook until just wilted, about 30 seconds.

Drain and rinse with cold water. Once cool, squeeze as much water from spinach as possible then roughly chop and reserve.

Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and cook until golden brown and tender, about 5 minutes. Add the garlic, 2 teaspoons of Italian seasoning, 1/2 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon pepper, and cook, stirring, until the garlic is fragrant, about 30 seconds.

Add the artichokes and cook, stirring, another 2 minutes. Remove from the heat and reserve.

Combine the eggs, cream, milk, lemon juice, remaining 1 tablespoon Italian seasoning, remaining 2 teaspoons salt, and remaining 1 teaspoon pepper in a large bowl. Whisk to combine. Add the bread, spinach, artichoke mixture, brie, 1/4 cup Parmesan, and parsley and stir to combine. If bread does not absorb all of liquid immediately then let rest until this happens, about 20 minutes.

Pour the bread pudding mixture into the prepared dish. Sprinkle remaining 1/4 cup Parmesan over the top and drizzle with remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil. Bake until firm in the center and golden brown, about 1 hour. Serve warm.

If you do your recipe searched, you will find that artichokes get paired a lot with spinach. But pairing artichokes with shrimp? YUM!

Shrimp Scampi with Artichokes
2007 Ellie Krieger, All rights reserved

2 tablespoons olive oil
4 large cloves garlic, minced (about 4 teaspoons)
2 medium shallots, thinly sliced (about 1/3 cup)
1 1/4 pounds large shrimp (about 20), peeled and deveined
1 (11-ounce) package frozen artichoke hearts, thawed, or 1 (14-ounce) can artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained, and quartered
1/3 cup dry white wine
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley, plus more for garnish
1/2 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add garlic and shallots and cook, stirring until softened but not browned, 2 to 3 minutes. Add shrimp, artichoke hearts, wine, and lemon juice and cook until the shrimp are cooked through, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the parsley, salt and pepper. Divide among 4 plates, garnish with additional parsley, and serve.

Kraft makes a wonderful hot appetizer called Hot Feta Artichoke Dip. The recipe is linked below. Serve this one the next time you want to impress guests

http://food.yahoo.com/recipes/kraft/52353/hot-feta-artichoke-dip

If you want to try eating the artichoke dip, but don’t really want to go through the process of making it, T.G.I. Friday’s Restaurant serves a Tuscan Spinach Dip that is loaded with artichoke hearts

http://www.tgifridays.com/menu/index.htm

Looking for artichokes without the hassle?

C&W delivers frozen artichoke hearts that can be tossed into pastas, while marinated artichoke hearts can be tossed into salads!

Each year in Castroville, CA (the self-proclaimed “Artichoke Center of the World”) celebrates their Artichoke Festival. If you are in the area, check it out! http://www.artichoke-festival.org/

If you are dying to learn more about this prickly insanely delicious plants, check out Artichokes.org.

This entry was posted on Sunday, April 13th, 2008 at 12:01 am and is filed under Food And Drink. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.