Recipe: Annabel Langbein’s artichokes
It’s spring and that means artichokes are in season. This vegetable is full of all sorts of goodies that make your liver sing, so it’s the perfect food to get stuck into as we head towards the festive season.
artichoke
A simple way to serve artichokes is with Annabel Langbein’s shallot vinaigrette. The following recipe is reproduced with permission from the publisher.
To cook globe artichokes
I’d suggest you cook as many artichokes as you desire, Annabel guidelines are one per person as a starter but I think two each, as part of main meal is perfect.
Trim the ends from each artichoke and remove the tough outer petals at the base. If not cooking at once, place trimmed artichokes in a bowl of cold water mixed with two tablespoons of lemon juice or vinegar. This will help prevent them browning.
To cook, place artichokes in a large pot and cover with water. Annabel recommends adding two tablespoons of salt to the water but to be honest, I never do. (Too much salt makes you crave salt in every meal. It’s an addictive flavour enhancer). Boil until they are tender and the petals can be easily pulled off. Small artichokes take about 15-20 minutes but larger ones take longer.
Lift out with a slotted spoon and drain. Allow to cool for 10 minutes.
Shallot vinaigrette
(For 6 artichokes)
I tab very finely chopped shallots or spring onion white
1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
2 tabs lemon juice
1 tablespoon white vinegar
1 tsp Dijon mustard
a little salt and ground black pepper
Shake all ingredients together in a small jar.
To eat
Gently press down on the top of each artichoke to open out the petals into a flower shape. Drizzle half of the vinaigrette on top. Place the rest in a small dipping bowl. Pull off a petal, dip into more vinaigrette if it needed, scrape the soft part from the base of the petal with your teeth. Continue to do so till you hit the choke in the middle.
Annabel Langbein, Simple Pleasures Annabel Langbein (ABC Books, 2012)
This recipe first appeared in the November 2012 newsletter. If you’d like a tasty recipe and health tips in your mail box every month, add your email address to the free sign up.
Similar Posts:
