The Recipe

Source: A Taste of Southern Italy by Marlena de Blasi

8 tiny artichokes, preferably the purple-lipped variety, or 4 small, very young artichokes, several inches of their stems still intact
1 1-pound fillet of baccala, skinless and boneless
1 cup whole milk
juice of 1 lemon
1 small head red lettuce, radicchio or red oak leaf, washed, spun dry, and coarsely shredded
4 ounces large green Sicilian or Greek olives, crushed lightly with a mallet, stones removed, the flesh coarsely chopped
1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
2 fat cloves garlic, peeled, crushed, and finely minced
1 small, dried red chile pepper, crushed, or 1/3 to ½ teaspoon dried chile flakes
1 ½ tablespoons good red wine vinegar
fine sea salt

Prepare the artichokes, trimming just a snip from their still-tender leaves and leaving them whole if they are tiny, slicing them in two, or even in fourths, if they are a bit larger, cutting out the choke should it have begun to develop beyond an innocent embryo.

Soften the baccala a bit with a mallet and soak for 24 hours in cold water (change the water three times, adding 1 cup of milk to the final water), rinse the baccala in cold water, cover again with cold water, and poach for 15 minutes. Drain and set aside.

In a large bowl, acidulate the artichokes with the juice of a lemon, add the shredded lettuce, the copped olives, and the poached baccala, cut into 1-inch pieces.

Make a simple warm vinaigrette by heating the olive oil, softening the garlic without coloring it for a minute or two, and scent the oil with the crushed chile. Remove from the heat, add the vinegar and a whisper of sea salt. Beat the dressing with a fork and pour it over the elements in the bowl, tossing them about and combining them well.

Present the salad with a young, cooled red wine that will do its best to stand up to both the artichokes and the baccala.

The Recipe

Source: A Ligurian Kitchen: Recipes And Tales from the Italian Riviera by Laura Giannatempo

3 small artichokes
3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice
5 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
2 large onions, thinly sliced
2 cups homemade or low-sodium canned chicken broth
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 tablespoon chopped parsley, plus more for garnish
2 ounces ham, cut into 1/4-inch dice
1 ½ pounds chicken livers, cut into 2 x 1/2-inch strips
¼ cup dry white wine

Clean the artichokes by cutting the tough stems and ½ inch to 1 inch off the top, and by removing the outer, tough leaves until you reach the tender, light green leaves near the center. Cut each artichoke in half lengthwise and remove the hairy white core inside of each. Place them immediately in a bowl of water with 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice or else they’ll turn very dark. Cut each half lengthwise into eight sections (cut them into four sections if the artichokes are very small). Leave the slices in the acidulated water until you’re ready to cook them.

Heat 4 tablespoons of the olive oil in a 12-inch skillet over medium-high heat. Add the onions and sauté, stirring frequently, for about 20 minutes adding 1 cup of the broth in 1-tablespoon increments. You want the onions browned but not burnt. Add the broth whenever the onions start sticking to the pan (each addition should make a sizzling noise.) If they start burning, turn down the heat.

Drain the artichokes and pat them dry with a paper towel. Add them to the onions with a generous pinch of salt, a few grinds of pepper, 1 cup of broth, and bring to a simmer. Reduce the heat to medium-low, add the parsley and ham, cover partially, and cook for about 15 minutes, or until the artichokes are tender.

Meanwhile, in a different skillet big enough to hold all the livers (12 to 14 inches wide), heat the remaining tablespoon of olive oil over medium-high heat. Season the chicken livers generously with salt and pepper. When the oil is hot, add the livers and cook them for about 5 minutes over medium-high, making sure to brown them on all sides. Transfer them to a dish near the stove.

When the artichokes are done cooking, turn off the heat and add the reserved livers. With the wine, deglaze the pan used to cook the livers over medium-high heat and reduce the liquid by half, about 2 minutes. Pour the wine sauce in with the livers and artichokes, add the remaining 1 tablespoon of lemon juice, and adjust seasoning with salt and pepper. Garnish with fresh parsley and serve immediately.

The Recipe

Source: Simply Tuscan: Recipes for a Well-Lived Life by Pino Luongo

½ cup extra virgin olive oil
2 whole cloves garlic
2 sprigs fresh rosemary
2 pounds lamb stew meat (leg or shoulder), cut into 1-inch cubes
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
2 cups lamb, veal, or chicken stock, plus 1 cup if needed
12 baby artichokes, tops and outer leaves trimmed off, cut into 4 or 6 pieces each, and soaked in 2 quarts water combined with the juice of 1 lemon
1 tablespoon fresh thyme leaves
1 bay leaf
grated zest of 1 lemon

In a wide, lidded casserole over medium-high heat, warm the olive oil. Add the garlic and rosemary sprigs and cook until the garlic turns golden, about 3 minutes. Turn the heat up to high and add the lamb. Sear on all sides. Season with salt and pepper.

Reduce the heat to low, add 2 cups of the stock, cover, and simmer for about 30 minutes, until the lamb is tender, adding a little stock if necessary to keep the lamb three quarters covered with liquid.

Drain the artichokes and add them to the pot, along with the thyme and bay leaf. Cook for 10 to 15 minutes, or until the artichokes are tender. Add the lemon zest, cook for 2 minutes more, and serve.

The Recipe

Source: La Cucina Italiana Magazine, May, 2010 Issue:

The Pasta

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
2 large eggs
2 large egg yolks
coarse sea salt

Artichokes and Shrimp

1/2 lemon
8 baby artichokes
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus more for drizzling
16 large head-on shrimp, peeled and deveined
coarse sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 large bunch arugula, washed and thoroughly dried

Make the Pasta:

On a clean work surface, mound flour and form a well in the center. Add eggs and egg yolks to the well. Using a fork, gently break up yolks and slowly incorporate flour from inside rim of well. Continue until liquid is absorbed, then knead for 10 minutes. Wrap dough tightly in plastic and let rest for 30 minutes.

Divide dough into 3 pieces. Cover 2 pieces with plastic wrap. Flatten remaining dough piece so that it will fit through the rollers of a pasta machine.

Set rollers of pasta machine at the widest setting, then feed pasta through rollers 3 or 4 times, folding and turning pasta until it is smooth and the width of the machine.

Roll pasta through machine, decreasing the setting, one notch at a time (do not fold or turn pasta), until pasta sheet is scant 1/16 inch thick.

Cut sheet in half crosswise; dust both sides of sheets with flour. Layer sheets between floured pieces of parchment or wax paper. Cover with paper and repeat with remaining dough.

Loosely fold 1 pasta sheet in half so short ends meet. Fold again in half. Cut folded sheet crosswise into scant 1/4-inch-wide tagliatelle. Unfold tagliatelle strips and lightly dust with flour; spread on a lightly floured baking sheet. Repeat with remaining pasta sheets.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Meanwhile, prepare artichokes and shrimp.

Prepare the Artichokes and Shrimp:

Fill a large bowl with cold water. Squeeze juice from lemon half into water in bowl, then add lemon half.

Peel artichoke stems. Cut off top 1/2 inch of 1 artichoke with a serrated knife. Bend outer leaves backward until they snap off close to base, then discard several more layers of leaves in same manner until you reach pale yellow leaves with pale green tips. Cut off green tips. Trim dark green fibrous parts from base and sides of artichoke with a small shard knife, then cut in half lengthwise and thinly slice; put slices in lemon water. Repeat with remaining artichokes.

In a large skillet, heat oil until hot but not smoking. Add shrimp; cook, turning occasionally, until opaque and cooked through, about 3 minutes; season with salt and pepper. Remove from heat.

Drain artichoke slices. Cook pasta in the boiling water until tender, about 3 minutes. Reserving 1/4 cup pasta cooking liquid, drain pasta and transfer to a bowl. Immediately toss with pasta cooking liquid, arugula and half of the artichoke slices. Divide remaining half of the artichoke slices onto serving plates, and fan out toward rim. Divide pasta among plates, top with shrimp, drizzle with oil, season with salt and serve immediately.

The Recipe

Source: Pasta Improvvisata : How to Improvise in Classic Italian Style by Erica De Mane

1 to 1 ½ dozen (depending on size) baby artichokes
juice of 1 lemon
about 3 tablespoons olive oil
freshly ground black pepper
2 or 3 garlic cloves, finely minced
½ pound or more fava beans, shucked and peeled
about 10 anchovy fillets, chopped
3 ripe tomatoe (about 1 ½ pounds), peeled, seeded, and diced
zest of 1 lemon
about 1 cup heavy cream
1 pound green penne

Trim and quarter the artichokes, placing them in a bowl of cold water with the lemon juice. Drain the artichokes and dry them with paper towels.

In a large skillet, heat the olive oil. Add the artichokes and season generously with pepper (hold back on adding salt; remember, you will be adding a large amount of anchovies to this dish). Saute until just starting to color. Add the garlic and saute only 1 minute. Add a splash of water, cover the pan, and simmer until the artichokes are tender but still firm, about 5 minutes.

Uncover the pan and add the fava beans, anchovies, tomatoes, lemon zest, and cream. Simmer until the anchovies are dissolved and the fava beans are tender, about 5 minutes. Taste for seasoning.

Cook the penne until al dente, drain, and add to the pan. Toss over medium heat until well coated.

The Recipe

Source: From Biba’s Italian Kitchen by Biba Caggiano

For the Filling:

2 pounds baby artichokes
juice of 1 lemon
2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced
2 tablespoons minced sun-dried tomatoes
¼ pound ricotta
¼ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese
2 tablespoons chopped fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley
salt to taste

For the Ravioli:

2 cups unbleached all-purpose flour
3 extra-large eggs

For the Sauce:

2 tablespoons olive oil
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
5 fresh, ripe plum tomatoes, about ¾ pound, seeded and diced
6-8 fresh basil leaves, cut into thin strips, or 1 tablespoon chopped fresh flat-leaf Italian parsley
salt to taste
½ cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

Prepare the Filling:

Remove the green leaves of the artichokes by snapping them off at the base. Stop when the leaves closer to the base are pale yellow and the tips of the artichokes are green. Slice off the green top. Cut the stem off at the base and, with a small knife, trim off the remaining green part at the base. Cut the artichokes into small wedges and place them in a bowl of cold water with the lemon juice to prevent discoloring.

Bring a medium-size saucepan of water to a boil over medium heat. Add 1 teaspoon of salt and the artichokes, and cook gently until tender, 3 to 4 minutes. Drain artichokes, place in a bowl, and cool.

Heat the oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the garlic, sun-dried tomatoes, and artichokes, and stir for a few minutes. Put the artichokes mixture in the bowl of a food processor and turn the machine on and off until the artichokes are chopped very fine. Make sure they are not pureed; they should retain a bit of granular consistency. Place the artichokes mixture in a medium bowl. Add the ricotta, Parmigiano, and parsley, and season with salt. Cover the bowl and refrigerate for a few hours to firm up the filling.

Prepare the pasta dough, using the flour and eggs in this recipe.

Roll out the dough and prepare ravioli.

Prepare the sauce:

Heat 2 tablespoons of the butter and the olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. When the butter foams, add the tomatoes and the basil, and season with salt. Cook, stirring a few times, until the tomatoes are soft and their juice has thickened, 3 to 4 minutes. Stir in the remaining tablespoon of butter and turn the heat off under the skillet.

While the sauce is cooking, bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add 1 tablespoon of salt and the ravioli. Cook, uncovered, over high heat until ravioli are tender but still a bit firm to the bite. Drain ravioli and place in the skillet with the sauce. Toss gently and quickly over low heat until the pasta and the sauce are well combined. If pasta seems dry, add a few tablespoons of the pasta cooking water. Serve with a sprinkling of Parmigiano.

The Recipe

Source: The Balthazar Cookbook by Keith McNally

2 cups loosely packed basil leaves
½ teaspoon coriander seeds
½ teaspoon black peppercorns
1 bay leaf
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons olive oil
½ pint pearl onions, peeled
2 cloves garlic, minced
1 ½ teaspoons salt
3 medium carrots, cut into 1/4-inch half-moons
12 baby artichokes, cleaned and thinly sliced
1 cup white wine
5 cups chicken stock
1 cup white beans, optional
6 halibut fillets
¼ teaspoon freshly ground white pepper

Prepare the Basil Purée:

Prepare an ice-water bath in a medium bowl and bring a medium saucepan of salted water to a boil. Add the basil and blanch for 1 minute. Strain, plunge the leaves into the ice bath, and reserve ¼ cup of the cooking water. Remove the leaves from the ice water and squeeze to remove as much liquid as possible. Place in the work bowl of a food processor along with the reserved ¼ cup of liquid and process until smooth, green, and bright. Refrigerate until needed.

Cook the Artichokes:

Wrap the coriander seeds, peppercorns, and bay leaf in cheesecloth to make a sachet. Set aside. Heat ¼ cup of olive oil in a large sauté pan over a medium flame. Add the onions and garlic along with 1 teaspoon of salt and sauté until the onions are soft and translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the carrots and herb sachet and cook for 5 minutes.

When the carrots have softened, add the sliced artichokes and the wine. Bring to a simmer and reduce the liquid by half, about 5 minutes. Add the chicken stock and simmer for 30 minutes. Stir in the cooked white beans, if using, and keep warm over a low flame while the halibut is cooked.

Cook the Fish

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Dry the halibut fillets and season with the remaining ½ teaspoon of salt and the ¼ teaspoon white pepper.

Use 2 large sauté pans to cook the fish or, if using 1 pan, cook the fish in 2 batches. Heat 3 tablespoons of olive oil in the sauté pan until the oil smokes. Place 3 of the fillets in the pan and cook for 2 minutes per side. Transfer the pan to the preheated oven to finish cooking for 5 minutes, or until the fish just begins to flake around the edges.

Just before serving, remove the spice sachet from the broth, add the basil puree, and add the remaining ¼ cup of olive oil. Stir well to combine, and spoon the warm barigoule sauce into 6 shallow bowls, with a halibut fillet in the center.

The Recipe

Source: The Red Cat Cookbook by Jimmy Bradley

2 pounds pork loin
½ cup plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
½ cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
3 cloves garlic, coarsely chopped
3 branches rosemary
salt
freshly ground black pepper
1 small bunch arugula
1 small head frisee, ends trimmed, white and yellow parts only
1 baby artichoke
8 ounces fava beans in the pod, peeled
1 teaspoon sliced mint
1 teaspoon sliced parsley
1 ½ ounces Pecorino, shaved into shards with a vegetable peeler

Put the pork in a baking dish or other shallow vessel. Add ¼ cup plus 2 tablespoons of the lemon juice, 3 tablespoons of the oil, the garlic, and the rosemary branches, and toss to coat the pork. Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Preheat the oven to 400 F.

Set a roasting pan over two stovetop burners and heat the pan over medium-high heat. Remove the pork from its marinade, brushing off any solids. Season the pork with salt and pepper, add it to the pan, and cook, turning the pork as needed, until a light brown crust forms on all sides, approximately 8 minutes. Transfer the pan to the oven and roast until an instant-read thermometer inserted into the center of the pork reads 145 F, approximately 40 minutes more. Remove the pan from the oven. Transfer the pork to a plate, tent with foil to keep warm, and let rest for 10 minutes. (During this time, the internal temperature should rise to 150 to 155 F.)

While the pork is resting, make a salad by putting the arugula and frisée in a bowl. Trim the artichokes by cutting off the top third with a heavy kitchen knife, then trimming the stem to 1 inch. Peel the stem to remove the bitter green exterior, then shave the artichoke on a mandoline (or slice very thin with a knife) and add the slices to the bowl. Add the fava beans, remaining ¼ cup lemon juice, remaining ½ cup oil, the mint, and parsley, and toss.

Slice the pork and divide among 4 plates. Top with the salad, then with some shaved cheese.

Note to the cook: Peel fava beans by removing the tough outer pod, then carefully remove the skin that envelopes each bean. Eight ounces fava beans in the pods yield about ¼ cup beans.

The Recipe

Source: Best American Side Dishes by the publishers of Cook’s Illustrated Magazine

Squeeze all the juice from one lemon into a quart of cold water. This will be used to prevent the artichokes from turning brown when cut.

Using scissors, clip off the thorns from the tips of the leaves, then with a knife, cut off the top quarter (the top two rows) of the leaves, and cut the stem flush with the base. Drop the trimmed artichokes into the acidulated water.

Steam over medium-high heat for around 30 minutes, until the outer leaves are easily pulled off. Remove from the steam tray with tongs (the artichokes retain a lot of heat), and allow to cool 15 minutes before serving.

Lemon-Mint Vinaigrette

Makes About ½ Cup. Basil can be substituted for the mint

6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
1 teaspoon grated zest and 2 tablespoons juice from 1 lemon
1 tablespoon minced fresh mint leaves
1 medium shallot, minced
½ teaspoon honey
salt and ground black pepper

Whisk all the ingredients, including salt and pepper to taste, together in a medium bowl until thoroughly blended. Serve with steamed artichokes.