Roman Artchichokes--Best in the World

When I ask myself what the culinary hallmarks of Rome would be, two vegetables always come to my mind: agretti and artichokes. Agretti, a unique sour vegetable similar in its look to seaweed and in taste to sorrel, is not much known even outside Rome and not available in my part of the US. Artichokes fortunately are available almost all year round so, today, I would like to talk about a Roman artichokes dish.

I have been experimenting with artichokes for quite some time and have been more or less successful with different recipes. But only once I ate Roman artichokes I fully understood their wonderful taste and fell in love with them forever. They became my favorite artichokes dish.

First, I tried famous Jewish artichokes in the Roman Ghetto's highly recommended restaurant Da Giggetto. Fried artichokes were delicious and a lot of fun, as I had to find my way of eating them , sucking on partially fried, partially soft leaves.

Second time I had Roman artichokes, my host, my friend's Mom, prepared them for me, showing me each step of the process. She bought these artichokes at her local market where a vendor had already prepared them for her. Cooking the peeled artichokes was much easier and faster and the result delicious.

Since I buy my artichokes locally such a service is not available so I end up always with dark stained fingers and a mountain of debris. I already tried probably all the artichokes from each local store that sells them and found that those from Trade Joe's are the best. I am waiting now to try them from my local farmers market.

The idea of Roman artichokes dish is very simple. Artichokes are stuffed with garlic and parsley, which often is paired with this vegetable, and steamed in water and oil. They come out delicate, almost buttery, and if prepared properly, edible and delicious from the stem to the leaves. Ever since my recent visit in Rome I have made artichoke quite often and I believe that by now I have mastered this dish. All I need to make this dish as perfect as it was in Rome, is a glass of white wine from Lazio.

Roman Artichokes
(Serves four)

Ingredients:
4 fresh globe artichokes,
one lemon,
4 garlic cloves,
2 tbsp chopped flat leaves parsley,
1/4 cup olive oil,
1/4 cup water,
salt to taste.

Preparation:
1. Remove outer leaves from artichokes until you get to the very green, fresh, and soft layer. Cut from the top of the artichoke about one third-half of the leaves.

2. Using a vegetable peeler peel off the stem and artichoke base. While preparing the next artichokes, put the ready one in a bowl of cold water with lemon juice from half of lemon to prevent discoloration.

3. When all the artichokes are prepared, drain them from water. Gently open leaves of artichokes and first put first a clove of garlic in each of them, then push about half a tbsp of chopped parsley.

4. In a heavy duty pot, tall enough to accommodate artichokes, put 1/4 cup of olive oil and water. Place artichokes head down and cover with a lid.

5. Heat the pot until oil and water start to sizzle. Turn down the heat to low medium and let the artichokes cook for about 30 minutes. Do not open the lid. After 30 minutes try with the fork if water evaporated and artichokes are soft. If not add a bit of water and let simmer for another couple of minutes. If they are ready, cover and let fry slightly for about 3 minutes.

6. Salt the artichokes before serving. Serve with lemon wedges.

Jerusalem Artichokes Soup

I have been quite busy with my kids' spring breaks and English classes I have recently taken up, so although I still cook, if I write anything, it is mostly my homework, not recipes. Being so preoccupied with many things, I chose today to share a recipe for an easy soup, which I enjoyed very much a couple of weeks ago.

I was very curious already for some time to try Jerusalem artichokes, which, except for the name, have nothing to do with Jerusalem. Also known as sunchokes, unfortunately, they are not too popular and easily available in my area. So when the other day I saw them in my Balducci store, I greedily bought the whole pound without yet having an idea what to make from them. In any case, I knew that they tasted pretty good served just raw, sliced in salads.

Raw Jerusalem artichokes are crunchy. They have an earthy flavor, which comes out even more intensively when they are cooked. They have an interesting look, similar to ginger, and have many nutritional values. Just like the regular artichokes, they contain inulin, a type of dietary fiber, which is qualified as prebiotic and promotes growth of good, intestinal bacteria. Inulin kills the bad and support the good bacteria in the digestive track. Jerusalem artichokes are also extremely high in iron, in fact highest among all known vegetables. They are also very rich in potassium and copper.

There are many ideas how to serve these artichokes but probably the most popular are all kind of soups. Particularly one recipe intrigued me a lot. The soup was made from puréed artichokes and finished with milk. That made it very light and dietetic. But since I like to experiment, I served my portion with a dollop of crème fraîche. And it tastes even better that way, as long as you do not have to worry about the extra calories.

Jerusalem Artichokes Soup

Ingredients:
1 lb Jerusalem artichokes, peeled and cut into smaller pieces,
1 medium onion, chopped,
1 garlic clove,
2 tbsp olive oil,
2 celery stalk, sliced,
4-5 cups vegetable stock,
1/2 cup milk,
crème fraîche or sour cream to serve,
salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation:
1. Heat the oil in a large heavy duty pot. Add the onion, garlic, celery and cook over the medium heat for about 5 minutes. Add Jerusalem artichokes and cook for another 5 minutes.

2. Pour vegetable stock into the pot. Season with salt and pepper. Simmer a soup for about 25 minutes, until the artichokes become soft.

3. Purée the soup using an electric blender. Add milk and bring to boil.

Serve the soup with a dollop of crème fraîche and white bread.

Artichoke Bottoms with Mascarpone and Smoked Salmon

A few years ago in the end of May or beginning of June my neighbours received a large shipment of artichokes from California and organized an artichoke party. They served a lovely lunch in their scenic backyard with artichokes accompanied by California white.

I enjoyed that event very much as, until then, I had not eaten artichokes too often. But I have never fully appreciated the hosts effort until I bought fresh artichokes myself and decided to make an artichoke dish from scratch.

Working with artichokes is messy and not too economical as only their inner parts are edible. They have to be fresh and young to be really good and they quickly change their color if not treated with lemon juice.

At first, I was planning to make an artichoke salad using their hearts but unfortunately they seemed not soft enough so I decided to use only their bottoms. At the end, only a very small part was left from a fairly large artichoke flower. After a lot of cutting I extracted only six modest bottoms.

I cooked them and decided to stuff them with a delicate filling not to overshadow their delicate taste. I also decided to serve them as a dinner starter rather than a main dish. This way only one or two could make the whole portion.

Now, after my experience with preparing artichokes from the scratch, I understand why they are considered such a delicacy and are served by the best and most experience chefs. Last month, an artichoke salad was on a 40 thousand dollars dinner menu which Wolfgang Puck prepared at George Clooney's home during the fundraising dinner for President Obama.

And here is my idea how to serve artichokes if you are not afraid to work with them.

Artichoke Bottoms with Mascarpone and Smoked Salmon
(Serves six)

Ingredients:
6 large or 12 small artichokes,
6 oz mascarpone cheese at room temperature,
2 oz smoked salmon slices,
juice from two lemons,
3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil,
3 tbsp chopped chives,
salt and pepper to taste.

Preparation:
1. Cut the upper halves of the artichokes and the stems off.

2. Using a small sharp knife peel off outer leaves until you get into the solid bottom.

3. Using a spoon or a grapefruit knife remove all the soft and fuzzy parts from the artichoke's core until you get just the clean bottoms

4. Place them in water with lemon juice while working with the rest of them to prevent discoloring.
5. In a medium pot bring to boil water with a tbsp of salt and two tbsp of lemon juice. Put the artichoke bottoms in and cook the for 8-10 minutes, until soft. Drain them and let them cool down.
6. In a small bowl mix mascarpone cheese with salt and pepper. Divide the cheese evenly among artichokes.
7. Cut salmon in small, square pieces. Put on top of mascarpone.
8. In a another small bowl mix olive oil and two tbsp lemon juice. Add chopped chives, salt and pepper. Mix the dressing and pour over the filled in artichokes.

Serve with baguette or  white bread.

Crispy Artichoke Roulade--A Wine Party Snack

After months of sabotaging me, my laptop caught on fire last week. Apparently, two years too late I have learned that it is a common problem with that model to the point that the company even sells the wire that usually breaks down. (I do not know why they just don't fix the problem themselves). If you think about buying a laptop for yourself or as a Xmas gift for someone you like or love, I have to warn you that it was a Toshiba, and my disappointment can be reversed only if they offer me a new laptop, which I don't think is going to happen.

As a result of that accident I have been incapacitated for a few days and I feel completely uninspired and powerless, because I have never realized how my creativity, inspiration, and everything else was facilitated by that small gadget. I hate the other big fancy computer I have to use now, and can't wait to find out if my little laptop is fixable. Meanwhile, I am just struggling to write anything, in particular something revealing. But since I was at a big party last night, and there are a few more ahead, maybe another party idea would be useful, especially with the New Year festivities approaching.

This is one of those simple snacks that do not take much but make a huge difference, especially if peanuts or a bag of chips are the alternative. I made some shortcuts while preparing it, which is buying puff pastry instead of making it myself (uncharacteristically, the one I bought was as good as a home-made one) and using easily available and canned ingredients. This recipe can be an inspiration for trying different fillings that you have handy, such as sun-dried tomatoes or mushrooms.

Artichoke Roulade

Ingredients:
1 pack of puff pastry (two sheets), thawed,
1 can artichoke hearts,
1 bag baby spinach, about 6 oz,
1 medium onion, chopped
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese,
2 tbsp butter,
1 egg,
salt and pepper.

Preparation:
1. Preheat oven to 400F.
2. Heat the butter in a medium skillet and fry the onion in it for about 3 minutes, or until soft.
3. Add spinach to the onion and let it cook until it softens and releases water; let the water evaporate and continue to cook until the leaves become dark green.
4. Take the skillet from the heat, cool, and add chopped artichokes.
5. Add Parmesan cheese and season with salt and pepper.
6. Unfold sheets of pastry and top each with a half of the filling.

7. Roll up each piece and brush with beaten egg.

8.Cut the pastry diagonally and place it on a greased baking tin, one inch apart. Bake for 15-20 min, or until gold.

Serve as a snack while still warm,or cold.