Tag: Baby artichokes

Melbourne – August: Winter Artichokes in risotto and stuffed

It is August and winter in Melbourne, and I am on the lookout for artichokes.

Fresh produce has always been essential to my cooking, and I am fortunate to live very close to Melbourne’s Queen Victoria Market, where seasonal ingredients are always within reach. Before the lockdown restrictions, I also shopped at various Farmers’ Markets, but for now, QVM is my main source of beautiful winter produce.

Last weekend I found these exceptionally green artichokes—local, in season, and noticeably different from the varieties available earlier in the year. Their freshness was unmistakable.

Fresh winter artichokes from the Queen Victoria Market, bright green and in season.

A few days later I purchased a handful of baby artichokes. These appear when the artichoke plant is nearing the end of its season. The plant no longer has the energy to produce full-sized globes, so it sends out smaller offshoots. They are often used for pickling. Unlike the bright-green mature artichokes, these babies are tinged with purple.

And what is the bunch of greens sitting beside them? Cime di rapa—a welcome surprise this late in the season, and still in excellent condition.

Baby artichokes and late-season cime di rapa

Stuffed Winter Artichokes

With the large artichokes, I made a classic stuffed version. I filled the centres with fresh breadcrumbs, grated Parmesan, garlic, parsley and extra virgin olive oil, then braised them in a mixture of white wine, stock and more olive oil.

Potatoes help keep the artichokes upright as they cook, and they absorb the braising liquid beautifully. The liquid should reach below the top of each artichoke. The potatoes are delicious as they soak up the flavours of the artichoke braising liquid.

Artichokes stuffed with breadcrumbs, Parmesan, herbs and garlic, ready to braise.

Artichokes should fit snugly in the pan. Sometimes the stems help keep them secure; other times I use potatoes to prop them up.

And what did I do with the baby artichokes?

Baby Artichokes in Risotto

The baby artichokes were braised in stock, white wine and extra virgin olive oil. Once cooked, I used their fragrant braising liquid as the base for a delicate risotto.

For the risotto:
Sauté garlic and onion in extra virgin olive oil.

Add the rice and stir until well coated.

Warm the artichoke braising liquid and add it gradually, as you would for a traditional risotto.

Stir through parsley halfway through cooking. Add the cooked baby artichokes and a small knob of butter during the final absorption of the stock.

The risotto should be served all’onda—soft, creamy and rippling like waves.

Finish with grated Parmesan, if you wish, though I often prefer tasting the natural sweetness of the artichokes without cheese.

Risotto made with baby artichokes and their aromatic braising liquid.

Carciofi and Carciofini

In Italian, carciofi are artichokes and carciofini are baby artichokes.
My blog contains many artichoke recipes; here are a few you might enjoy:

 

CARCIOFI IMBOTTITI (Stuffed artichokes)

CARCIOFINI SOTT’ OLIO (Preserved artichokes in oil)

CARCIOFI (Artichokes and how to clean them and prepare them for cooking) 

CARCIOFI FARCITI (Stuffed artichokes: with meat and with olives and anchovies)

There are also recipes on my blog for Cime di Rapa.

CARCIOFINI SOTT’ OLIO (Preserved artichokes in oil)

If you live in the Southern hemisphere (as I do in Melbourne, Australia,) you may have noticed small artichokes for sale. Carciofi  is the word for the normal sized artichokes and carciofini are the small ones. Carciofini are also the baby artichokes that never develop to full size and grow at the end of the plant’s growing season (photo of carciofi spinosi taken at Palermo Market)

These small artichokes (that never develop to full size) are considered too small to cook and are customarily preserved in oil and eaten in the non-artichoke season. I realize that this may be difficult for some of us to imagine because we appear to be able to purchase artichokes, asparagus and tomatoes all year round in Australia, but being Italian and having been brought up with respecting and celebrating local, seasonal produce, I go without. (I ask myself how far away some of this produce is coming from and how long ago was it picked.)

The carciofini are first poached and then preserved under oil. Usually I only preserve very small quantities (they get eaten very quickly), but for each kilo of artichokes,

INGREDIENTS
small  artichokes, 1 kilo
acidulated water – 2 lemons
For the poaching liquid
I use 4 cups of white wine vinegar, a cup of white wine and about one teaspoon of salt for the poaching liquid. They need to poach in sufficient liquid otherwise the bitter taste becomes concentrated and they could be unpleasant.
For the oil mixture:
Sufficient extra virgin oil to cover the artichokes and
1 tablespoon of whole black pepper corns, 5 bay leaves and about a tablespoon of dry oregano.
PROCESSES
Use artichokes that look closed and firm (when the leaves start to open, the choke has started to develop and this can happen even to small artichokes if they have been left on the plant too long).
Strip back the leaves (you just want the tender heart) and kept them whole. Soak them in the water and lemon to stop them from browning.
Drain the artichokes and leave them upside down while you make up the vinegar/wine mixture. Use a stainless steel saucepan with a lid (to cover the artichokes as they cook).
Place the artichokes in the boiling mixture, cover and poach them gently in the mixture until cooked but not soft – still firm in the centre, but the outer leaves should have softened. The time for cooking varies (my last batch took 12 minutes).
Drain them of as much vinegar as possible and when cool pack them carefully into sterilised glass jars, pressing them down gently and trying to prevent as many gaps as possible. (Rather than a large jar I use smaller sized jars so as to minimise possible spoilage once opened).
Add flavours and cover with oil. To allow any trapped air to escape leave them for about 3 hours before sealing. During the resting time the level of the oil may be reduced, top with more oil and ensure they are well covered (some use an inverted small saucer on top as a weight to help keep the artichokes submerged but make sure that you sterilise the saucer).
Seal the jars and allow them to steep in the oil for at least 10 days before you eat them. Because I make small quantities and live in an apartment with little storage space, I keep them in my fridge, but they can be stored in a cool, dark place for about 6 months.

 

I never add fresh herbs or garlic to any preserves, as these are likely to go off, release gas and spoil the whole preserve.

When ready to use, remove the quantity of artichokes from the jar, drain them of some of the oil, add garlic slices and finely chopped parsley and a dash of lemon juice.

After each jar is opened, it is best to use the artichokes quickly. Add extra oil to the remaining artichokes to keep the contents submerged.I always keep opened jars in the fridge.