In case you can't tell, most of my cooking inspiration comes from my dad. Last night, for my mom's birthday, we had perfectly cooked and seasoned fillet, perfect baked potatoes, a salad with my dad's healthy salad dressing and grilled artichokes. Artichokes are by far, my favorite veggie. My mom ate an artichoke almost every day when she was pregnant with me. I truly believe that is the reason for my deep love of artichokes. If you have never cooked an artichoke you are missing out. I think they intimidate people. But please embrace the artichoke. It is artichoke season right now. The globe giant artichokes are best. The following recipe is the best way to prepare them.
4 globe artichokes
1/2 stick butter
3 TB vinegar (any kind, I like cider or red wine vinegar)
4 cloves of garlic - just dump them in whole
olive oil
kosher or sea salt
aioli for dipping (recipe follows)
Slice the top of each artichoke off. Slice stem so artichoke can sit up by itself with the petals sitting up. Take scissors and cut off the top 1/4 of each petal. This is the thorny part. Give artichoke a good rinse under water. Get a big stock pot of water boiling on the stove. Add butter, vinegar and garlic cloves to the water. Add the artichokes and cover. Turn heat down to about medium low. You want it to still be a rolling boil but not boil over. Boil artichokes for about 35 minutes. Get a pair of tongs and carefully remove them from the water. Slice them in half with a large serrated bread knife. Scoop out the purple leaves that are prickly in the middle with a spoon. Rub each half of artichoke with olive oil and sprinkle kosher or sea salt. Grill over direct flame for about 5 minutes on each side. They should have some grill marks but not be black. Serve with aioli, mayonnaise or melted butter with lemon on the side. To eat: pluck each petal off and dip in whatever sauce you choose and scrape teeth from top of petal to the bottom. Discard petal in a bowl. Eat entire bottom or heart. It's the best part.
aioli
2 or 3 fresh garlic cloves, peeled and chopped. (If they've started to sprout, don't use them for aioli.) Large pinch coarse sea or kosher salt
1 egg yolk, at room temperature
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil Freshly ground black pepper
Place garlic and salt in a food processor fitted with a metal blade, or in a blender. Pulse for 2 seconds. Add the egg yolk and lemon juice, and pulse on and off until blended. Turn on and begin adding the olive oil (pure first, then extra-virgin) in a thin stream. If it becomes too thick, thin it out with some room-temperature water and continue adding oil until you've used it all. Finish with pepper and (if necessary) a bit more salt. The reason for using 2/3 pure olive oil is to keep the flavor of the oil from becoming overpowering. This is a perfect example of how by using a fully-flavored extra virgin oil you can use much less, thereby saving money and getting better flavor.
Place garlic and salt in a food processor fitted with a metal blade, or in a blender. Pulse for 2 seconds. Add the egg yolk and lemon juice, and pulse on and off until blended. Turn on and begin adding the olive oil (pure first, then extra-virgin) in a thin stream. If it becomes too thick, thin it out with some room-temperature water and continue adding oil until you've used it all. Finish with pepper and (if necessary) a bit more salt. The reason for using 2/3 pure olive oil is to keep the flavor of the oil from becoming overpowering. This is a perfect example of how by using a fully-flavored extra virgin oil you can use much less, thereby saving money and getting better flavor.
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