More on artichokes!

How is the artichoke prepping / cooking / eating going?!

I also wanted to mention a few ideas for cooking with artichokes already prepared.  If you can find canned artichokes packed in water, these are ideal for having on hand to quickly add to dishes.  If you can only find canned artichokes that are marinated in oil, then please grab a package of frozen artichoke hearts instead.  These are much more healthy!

Artichoke hearts are a great addition to pizza.  Simply drain them (defrost first if using frozen), squeeze the extra moisture out of them by placing them inside a dish towel and squeezing the water out.  Then give them a quick chop and add to the top of pizza.  Complimentary toppings to this would be: roasted red peppers, sauteed onions (yellow or red), roasted garlic (see below for tutorial), and chicken.

One of our favorite household Friday night meal is pizza. I make my crust from scratch (see below for tutorial), then pile on the toppings and bake!  My favorite combination lately is: a thin layer of pesto (instead of red sauce), mozzarella or monterey jack cheese or a combination of both topped with artichokes, cooked sliced or shredded chicken and roasted garlic.  MMMMMMM!  Give it a try this weekend; you'll save a few bucks and some calories by making it yourself and the options for pizza toppings are endless!

Roasted Garlic:


Cut a piece of foil large enough to create a little pouch that can fit 1 or 2 heads of garlic.


Take 1 or 2 garlic bulbs and slice the top off so the tops of most of the pieces are showing.  Sit the bulbs on the foil, right in the middle.  Slowly pour olive oil on top of each bulb, allowing it to drain into the garlic.  Once it starts dripping down the sides you have enough.  Add a sprinkling of salt and pepper to the top of each bulb.  Now wrap your foil around the bulbs, leaving some room at the top for air circulation.  Fold in the sides as well.  You want the garlic to be tight inside with no air escaping, but with some room inside for the garlic to roast.  Place your packet inside of a preheated 400 degree oven, for about 30 - 45 minutes.  The garlic is ready when it is nice and soft and you can "squeeze" it out of the skin.

Pizza Crust:


This is my favorite pizza crust recipe.  


http://goodcheapeats.com/2009/07/basic-homemade-pizza/

It makes a lot of dough, so I usually make twice as much pizza as we will eat and then refrigerate the leftovers for lunches for the next few days.  The dough also freezes well, if you pack it into a ball and wrap tightly with plastic wrap.  Put the plastic wrap covered dough into a freezer bag and seal tightly to prevent freezer burn.  To use, simply defrost for about 24 hours in the fridge, then let it come to room temp (about 2 hours) before cooking.  
I also follow that recipe for baking and my pizza always turns out fabulous.  Good luck and let me know what fun pizza creations you come up with!

How to cook an artichoke

I live 45 minutes away from Watsonville, CA - the artichoke capital of the world!!  And I LOVE them.  At first glance, artichokes don't look edible with their tough outer skin and prickley points at the tip of each leaf.  However, once cooked you can eat the base of each leaf and you can eat the meaty heart of the artichoke. 

Let's get started.

First, get a large pot and put a few cups of water (you will be placing a steamer basket in the pot, so you want enough water to steam for 30 - 45 minutes) and a tablespoon or two of balsamic vineagar.  I prefer this flavor combination as the balsamic brings a bit of sweetness to the artichoke.  Alternately, you can add the juice of half a lemon and a few peeled garlic cloves to the water.  They add nice flavor to the artichoke.



(photo from simplyrecipes.com)

Using scissors, cut off the end of each leaf so it looks like the picture above.  This gets rid of the sharp point on each leaf.  Also cut off the top to expose the interior of the artichoke.  This helps it to cook all the way through.  I usually also cut off the stem to make a flat base to put in the steamer.  Some people steam the 'choke with the stem on, open it and eat it's inside as well but I am not familiar with that.

Place your artichoke in the steamer basket, either laying on its side (if you left the stem on) or standing upright (if you cut off the stem).  Cover the pot with a lid, and let it steam with the water at a rolling boil for 30 - 45 minutes.  You know that the artichoke is fully cooked when you can easily pull off one of the bottom leaves.

How to eat an artichoke:

  
(photos from simpyrecipes.com)

You only eat the bottom "meat" off of the leaf.  Using your teeth to scrape it off, you'll see the edible part is a lighter green than the non-edible leaf.  To test for doneness, you can try to scrape the meat off of the leaf.  If it hard then the artichoke is not done cooking.  If it is soft and easy to pull off with your teeth it is done.

Some people like to dip each piece of artichoke in sauce.  Some ideas include: balsamic vineagrette, mayo mixed with a few teaspoons of balsamic vineager (to your liking), or melted butter.

Continue pulling off all the leaves until you get to this:


(photo from simplyrecipes.com)

The fuzze part you see here is NOT edible.  Using a spoon, you will start scraping it off and notice more of the off white "meat" underneath.


(photo from simplyrecipes.com)

Once your artichoke heart looks like this, you can just cut it into pieces and eat it!  And after all that work you will really enjoy the delicious deep flavor of the artichoke heart :)

Let me know how it goes!  And please feel free to leave questions or clarifications in the comment section and I will respond as quickly as I can.