I am Sandi, blogging fromthe WhistleStop Cafe kitchen. This is my first recipe from our Pomodori e Vino cooking challenge, and luckily it is one of my favorites when eating at a Roman trattoria. Carciofi alla Romana~ or Artichokes, Roman style.
The first of many weekly challenges… to find the right kind of ingredients here in Alabama. I managed to find the large globe artichokes, which are not exactly the stout, tender artichokes found in Italy. Allora. These will just have to work.
Most of the essentials of Italian cooking involve the ‘process’ of cooking. Marcella goes into details about the proper way to clean and prepare the artichokes… which is essential for most dishes using the fresh artichoke.
First~ remove the outer leaves. If at first this seems wasteful, she says it is more wasteful to cook something that can’t be eaten. (I like her thinking!)
Continue until you reach the tender inner leaves. Cut the tips of the inner leaves off.Rub all of the cut surfaces with lemon to prevent browning.Mean while, mince some mint, parsley, garlic and mix with salt and pepper.Rub the chokes well with the herbs and place tops down in a pot and cook until tender~ the smell is amazing! I served mine with some nice mint and fennel risotto.
Remember~ a new recipe everyday!
Buon Appetito y’all,
Sandi