Tweet
I tried something out a couple of days ago that came out so well I thought I should share.
I was baking some mahi for dinner. We had some artichokes that needed to get used, so I decided to try baking them at the same time as the fish. I did some googling, and found this recipe, For the Love of Cooking - Printable Recipes: Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic and Basil, which I used as a point of departure.
I modified the olive oil mixture a bit. I used more olive oil, so it was more of a dressing than a paste. I increased the garlic, and used a garlic press. I added marjoram and fresh ground coriander to the mix. I didn't have a lemon, so I used lemon juice.
******
I cut the artichokes in half and cleaned them as described. As soon as I sliced and cleaned an artichoke half I liberally applied lemon juice, letting the juice get into the cavity and making sure it got among the leaves before I went to work on the next half. (At this juncture the primary purpose of the lemon juice is as an anti-oxidant.)
After I had cleaned the artichokes I worked the olive oil mixture into the artichoke halves, coating the cavity and being sure ample portions were worked in among the leaves.
I then put the artichokes, cut side down, into a baking dish along with the chicken stock. I drizzled about a half teaspoon of balsamic vinegar on each half, making sure that the vinegar got in among the leaves.
I didn't bother with trimming the ends of the leaves.
*****
I covered the baking dish and put in the covered dish in the oven at 260 deg for about two hours of cooking. Nice thing here; since I work at home I look for things that can slow cook while I get back to work.
When I checked it about an hour later most of the chicken stock was either cooked off or had been absorbed. I drizzled the artichokes with a pomegranate-blueberry vinaigrette salad dressing (from the local Safeway) to add a bit of sweetness and bite (again making sure that the vinaigrette got into among the leaves) and added a bit to the bottom of the dish, and put the dish back in the oven with the temp turned down to about 225. On a whim, in the last half hour I turned the artichokes over and filled up the centers of the artichokes with grape tomatoes.
******
Best frickin' artichokes I've had in my life. Definitely a do-it-again, and now I'm going to get a bit more creative with the stuffing that I add to the artichokes at the end.
With an appropriate stuffing this could easily be a main course for us. We don't eat much red meat, favor seafood, and emphasize veggies and fruits in our meals.
*****
Sometime within the next week or two I'm planning to fix some seafood with a Veracruz sauce. I figure that if we end up with some leftovers that aren't enough for an entire second meal, I can just make a stuffing for the artichokes with the leftovers and get at least one, if not two, added meals out of the veracruz.
I was baking some mahi for dinner. We had some artichokes that needed to get used, so I decided to try baking them at the same time as the fish. I did some googling, and found this recipe, For the Love of Cooking - Printable Recipes: Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic and Basil, which I used as a point of departure.
I modified the olive oil mixture a bit. I used more olive oil, so it was more of a dressing than a paste. I increased the garlic, and used a garlic press. I added marjoram and fresh ground coriander to the mix. I didn't have a lemon, so I used lemon juice.
******
I cut the artichokes in half and cleaned them as described. As soon as I sliced and cleaned an artichoke half I liberally applied lemon juice, letting the juice get into the cavity and making sure it got among the leaves before I went to work on the next half. (At this juncture the primary purpose of the lemon juice is as an anti-oxidant.)
After I had cleaned the artichokes I worked the olive oil mixture into the artichoke halves, coating the cavity and being sure ample portions were worked in among the leaves.
I then put the artichokes, cut side down, into a baking dish along with the chicken stock. I drizzled about a half teaspoon of balsamic vinegar on each half, making sure that the vinegar got in among the leaves.
I didn't bother with trimming the ends of the leaves.
*****
I covered the baking dish and put in the covered dish in the oven at 260 deg for about two hours of cooking. Nice thing here; since I work at home I look for things that can slow cook while I get back to work.
When I checked it about an hour later most of the chicken stock was either cooked off or had been absorbed. I drizzled the artichokes with a pomegranate-blueberry vinaigrette salad dressing (from the local Safeway) to add a bit of sweetness and bite (again making sure that the vinaigrette got into among the leaves) and added a bit to the bottom of the dish, and put the dish back in the oven with the temp turned down to about 225. On a whim, in the last half hour I turned the artichokes over and filled up the centers of the artichokes with grape tomatoes.
******
Best frickin' artichokes I've had in my life. Definitely a do-it-again, and now I'm going to get a bit more creative with the stuffing that I add to the artichokes at the end.
With an appropriate stuffing this could easily be a main course for us. We don't eat much red meat, favor seafood, and emphasize veggies and fruits in our meals.
*****
Sometime within the next week or two I'm planning to fix some seafood with a Veracruz sauce. I figure that if we end up with some leftovers that aren't enough for an entire second meal, I can just make a stuffing for the artichokes with the leftovers and get at least one, if not two, added meals out of the veracruz.
but I saw a lot of them growing when I went on a tour on the way back from Carmel. shaggy
Comment