Artichoke Gratinee
Nearly every day for the past week or so, X would walk in the door after walking Rose around dinnertime, and say, “What’s that I smell? Artichokes?”
“No,” I’d tell him. “I’m not making artichokes.”
But I got the hint. Artichokes are, along with chocolate mousse, one of the foods that make up his fondest childhood memories. His mother used to steam them, and give one to each member of the family, which they’d eat dipped in mayonnaise. I’m pretty sure they had chocolate mousse for dessert.
Steaming’s fine, but I wanted to do something different. I flipped through my fat black binder filled with recipes clipped from newspapers and magazines, and found one that sounded like just what I wanted – a baked artichoke with a crispy, cheesy gratin top. I changed it up a bit – substituting what I had on hand, Parmesan, for Pecorino Romano, and opting not to use garlic, but a shallot, which wouldn’t overwhelm the artichoke’s delicate flavor, and upping the overall amount of breadcrumbs so I’ve have plenty for the two big boys that I’d found at the market.
Turns out, we didn’t need two, but just one for the two of us – which meant that we got to have artichokes two nights in a row. I figure I’ve just bought myself some time.
Artichoke Gratinee
Adapted from Bon Appetit, April 2008
Makes 2
2 large artichokes
1 shallot, minced
¼ cup Parmesan, shredded
2 tablespoons capers, roughly chopped
2 cups breadcrumbs
½ teaspoon fresh thyme
sea salt
pepper
2 tablespoons olive oil
1 lemon, halved
1 cup white wine (dry)
Preheat oven to 200 C/400 F.
1. Make the stuffing. In a medium skillet, drizzle the 2 tablespoons olive oil and add the chopped shallot. Cook until the shallot begins to become translucent, 3-5 minutes, and then add the breadcrumbs, sea salt and pepper. Stir and let the breadcrumbs cook a bit, about 1 minute or so. Remove from heat. Let cool a little bit, and then add the Parmesan and the fresh thyme. Set this aside.
2. Prep the artichokes. Pull off the large bottom leaves, and with kitchen scissors, snip off about 1-inch of all of the remaining leaves, including the top. With a melon baller or spoon, scoop out the inside leaves and the hairy “choke.” Squeeze lemon juice all over the top and sides of the artichoke and then plunge the cleaned artichoke into a bowl filled with water. Squeeze the rest of the lemon in the water, and do the same with the other artichoke.
3. Stuff the middle and inside of the leaves of both artichokes with the breadcrumb mixture, place in a Pyrex dish, and pour the wine and 1 cup of water around them both. Cover tightly with foil and slide into the oven. Cook for 1 hour to 1 ½ hours, depending on the size of the artichokes (mine took 1 ½ hours).
Eat warm, or at room temperature (or cold the next day – it’s still delicious).
