Stuffed Artichokes

My family loves stuffed artichokes. I’ve been making them for so many years I don’t really even follow any kind of recipe. But, I’ll do my best to write one so you can enjoy them as much as we do.

Artichokes are something of an acquired taste. And, even if you like the taste you may not like the method. You have to be willing to get right in there with your hands (freshly washed, of course), pull apart those leaves, and scrape them along your bottom teeth.

There is more debris than actual edible flesh. Still, a stuffed artichoke is a wonderful thing. I hope you’ll give them a try.

BTW — here is a great site that will tell you everything you need to know about artichokes. I didn’t realize they’re an antioxidant powerhouse!

This, along with a few other delectable artichoke recipes, can be found at The W.H.O.L.E. Foods Friday Foodie Fix.

Stuffed Artichokes

4 whole artichokes
1 cup seasoned Italian GF breadcrumbs
2 tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano cheese (optional)
1 large garlic clove, finely minced
3 teaspoons olive oil
2 1/2 cups chicken broth

Prepare the artichokes by cutting off the long stem to about 1/2 inch below the bottom of the artichoke. You want it to be able to stand up on its own without tipping over but it’s good to have some stem remaining. Then, use a very strong sharp knife to cut off about 1/2 to 1 inch from the top of the artichoke. With a scissors cut the thorns off the remaining outer leaves leaving each one with a squared-off top. Here are very comprehensive directions on cleaning an artichoke.

Pull apart the leaves by putting your thumbs gently in the center of the artichoke and pulling gently outward in a few places. Rinse the artichoke inside and out and invert on a paper towel lined dish to drain.

While the artichokes are draining you can prepare the stuffing. Mix the breadcrumbs, cheese and the minced garlic clove together. Pour in 2 teaspoons of olive oil and mix with a fork until the breadcrumbs are moist. You may also add a teaspoon or two of chicken broth but be careful not to make the mixture too moist. It should be just damp.

Place an artichoke on a paper plate. Take a teaspoon and scoop up some of the stuffing. Place the teaspoon down into the leaves to deliver the stuffing to the artichoke. Using ¼ of the mixture place the stuffing in about 8-10 places around the artichoke making sure you distribute it to both inner and outer leaves. It’s a bit messy but the paper plate will catch any fallen crumbs. Use these to top off your artichoke.

The artichokes are now ready to be steamed. Place a stainless steel vegetable steamer basket in the bottom of a large, heavy pot. (If you don’t have a steamer you can place the artichokes directly into the pan. It’s not ideal but it will work.) Reserve about ¼ cup of the chicken broth and place the remaining broth into the bottom of the pot. Add enough water to reach the just below the bottom of the steamer. Place the artichokes into the steamer. Drizzle the remaining chicken broth and olive oil over the top of the artichokes. Cover the pot and place it on a medium high burner until the liquid begins to boil. Lower to medium but be sure to keep a low boil going throughout. Important: maintain the water level by adding more water as needed throughout the cooking time.

Steam for 50-60 minutes. A fresh artichoke will steam in that amount of time and be tender and delicious. If your artichoke is tough after that amount of cooking then it’s probably not undercooked — it just not young or fresh.

Let the artichokes cool for 10-15 minutes. Gently remove from the pot and serve.

Tip: Eating an artichoke requires two plates. One for the artichoke and one for all the debris - leaves and choke. Once you’ve eaten the outer leaves (and by that I mean scrape the meat off — you don’t eat the entire leaf) you’ll need to do a little work to get to the heart. The innermost leaves are typically light purple (you can eat these if you like) and beneath them is a kind of light green fuzzy thistle-like choke. Use a spoon to remove the choke being careful to leave the solid part, the heart, intact. After all that work getting to the heart is the prize.

To make these vegan omit the cheese and use water in place of chicken broth.

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Roasted Escarole

My mother made escarole soup for us when we were kids. If my memory serves me right it was escarole and beans in a chicken soup base. And, she would throw in a small piece of pepperoni to give it some spice. Pretty simple and very delicious.

She didn’t use escarole in any other dishes - just the soup. So, when my sister, niece and I had dinner in a small (very good) Italian restaurant at the Jersey shore and saw roasted escarole on the menu we jumped on it. Mmm, it was so good. The chef baked it in the oven with a bread crumb topping. I think each serving was half a head of escarole. It was delicious.

I tried several times to replicate it and think I’ve finally done it. Here it is just the way I remember it.

Roasted Escarole

2 tablespoons olive oil
1 head escarole
1 garlic clove
salt and pepper
1/4 cup italian seasoned breadcrumbs (gluten free)
2 tablespoons grated Pecorino Romano cheese (sheep’s milk)
1/4 cup chicken broth

Preheat the oven to 350℉.

Meanwhile, pour 1 tablespoon of the olive oil in an ovenproof skillet and warm over a medium high heat. Cut the escarole in half or quarters. Gently wash under cool water and then shake out as much of the water as possible. Finish drying by wrapping in a clean dishcloth and patting gently.

Crush the garlic and put into the pan with the olive oil. Stir briefly and add the escarole, cut side down. After about a minute or two, or when the cut side is slightly wilted, turn the escarole over to cook the other side.

While the second side is cooking salt and pepper the top of the escarole and sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and cheese. Drizzle the remaining olive oil over the top. Turn the heat off. Gently pour the chicken broth (being careful of sputtering) around the outside — not over — the escarole halves.

Put the skillet in the preheated oven and bake for about 10 minutes or until the escarole is sufficiently wilted and the breadcrumbs look light brown and crunchy.

Serve immediately.

If you don’t have seasoned breadcrumbs you can add some dried parsley, oregano, garlic and onion salt, and pepper to plain breadcrumbs.

I’m sure this would be good with other greens, too — romaine, for example.

To make this dairy-free and vegan omit the cheese.

Click to see how I make my gf breadcrumbs.

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