Globe Artichokes stuffed with Lamb and pistachios

Have you ever considered the anatomy of an artichoke? I’m talking about those things that we pull off and slide through our teeth. Are they leaves or petals? Turns out, neither is correct. An artichoke is a thistle, and the globe is actually a bud which, if left alone, will bloom into a lovely flower. Those things we pull off and slide through our teeth are called bracts.

Go know!

But everyone knows them as “leaves,” so we’ll call them that for simplicity.

I grew up eating steamed artichokes, dipping the leaves in melted butter. I thought it was the only way to eat them, which was fine with me.

The first time I encountered a stuffed artichoke was at an Italian restaurant. It floated past me through the air in the hands of a waiter, and was set down in all its majesty on the table beside mine. And there it sat on its own plate holding court, looking like it was waiting for everything else on the table to bow down to it, in all its charred and crispy glory. When the waiter came to take my order, all I said was, “‘Please bring me one of those!” It did not disappoint. A few days later, I was making them.

Now, when I’m making artichokes, they’re most often steamed and served with a sauce made of equal parts butter and olive oil, to which I add a squeeze of lemon, some crushed garlic, and a generous amount of salt. They don’t take long to prepare. The points of the leaves are snipped with kitchen scissors, and a heavy knife is used to lob off the top and the stem, so that it can sit flat on a plate. The dipping sauce is made by putting all the ingredients in a ramekin, and microwaving until the butter is melted and it’s all combined.

But when I want something special, I stuff them. My usual stuffing is the ubiquitous Italian breadcrumb stuffing, and it’s wonderful. You can find the recipe for Stuffed Artichokes, here.

Tonight, however, I’m going to go for even more drama. These artichokes are going to be the main course, stuffed with seasoned, tender ground lamb and pistachios.

To get to the heart of the matter—If I’m eating a plain steamed artichoke, I don’t mind having to remove the choke when I get to the heart. It’s easily done with a spoon or a dinner knife—I mastered the technique by the time I was eight.

When the artichoke is stuffed, however, it’s a different story. It’s very annoying, and challenging, to try to remove the choke without getting it tangled in the stuffing, and getting some of the choke in your mouth is as pleasant as munching on a bunch of little cactus thorns.

Removing the choke from a raw artichoke is no simple feat. When raw, the leaves are not pliant. It’s difficult to separate them enough to get into the center to the choke, and if you do get there, it’s also difficult to ascertain where the choke ends and the heart begin. The last thing you want to do is to sacrifice a single morsel of the heart, which is one of the most extraordinary flavors of the vegetable world.

How should we cook our lamb-stuffed artichokes? I love the crispy, charred finish that an artichoke gets when it’s roasted in the oven, but I also love the tender, melt-in-your-mouth softness of a steamed artichoke. So, I thought, what if I par-boil them, then stuff them, and then finish them in the oven? It was an excellent idea that took several tries to get right, but once I did, I’d achieved artichoke perfection. They were both tender and soft, and crispy and charred. And it made removing the choke a snap.

Here’s the overview:

I learned that the sweet spot is to steam them for somewhere between 10 and 15 minutes, depending upon their size. You want the leaves to be yielding so that you can easily separate them enough to get some stuffing into each one. You want the heart and choke to be soft enough to easily scoop out the hairy part. But if they’re too soft, you’ll be struggling to keep the whole thing from falling apart while you handle them, so don’t over-steam them.

HOW TO PREPARE ARTICHOKES FOR STUFFING

• Begin by pulling off the smaller leaves all around the bottom of the artichoke, going up one or two layers. The photo should give you a good idea of how far to take it.

• Next, cut off the stem at the base, leaving a level bottom so that the artichoke sits up nicely and proudly on the plate.

• Sometimes artichoke stems are tender and edible, other times not so much. But…you won’t know until you try. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the tough outer skin from the stems and cut the stems into ½ inch long pieces. You’ll steam them along with the artichokes and then decide if you’re going to add them to the stuffing or toss them. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

• Lay the artichokes on their sides and use a heavy knife to cut off the top quarter of each one.

• Then, with kitchen scissors, cut the sharp points off each leaf. Otherwise, you might need to classify dinner as an extreme sport and have medical support teams at the ready.

• Place the stems, plus the smaller bracts that you pulled off, into a large pot of water and bring it to a boil. The pot should be big enough to hold all of your artichokes and the water should come up high enough to cover them at least half-way.

• When the water boils, add the artichokes and simmer them for 15—20 minutes. You should be able to pierce the bottoms with a fork, but don’t let them get too tender or they will be difficult to stuff.

• Then, remove the artichokes, the loose bracts, and the stem pieces from the pot and allow them to rest until they’re cool enough to handle easily. Taste a piece of the stem and determine whether or not it’s pleasant to eat. If yes, finely chop them and set them aside. You’ll use a spoon to scrape off any flesh from those loose bracts, and add it to the stuffing.

• Once cool, gently separate the center leaves with you fingers and pull out the little pointy leaves in the center. Using a sharp melon baller (or a spoon), scoop out the hairy choke. Your artichokes are now ready to stuff.

TO MAKE THE STUFFING

makes enough for 4 large artichokes

Ingredients:

• 1 lb ground lamb

• a large onion, finely diced

• 1/4 cup fruity olive oil

• ½ cup plain dry breadcrumbs

• 3/4 tsp salt

• 3 large cloves of garlic, minced or pressed

• 1/4 cup chopped flat-leaf parsley

• 1 ½ tsp cumin

• 1 ½ tsp coriander

• 1 tsp paprika

• 3/4 tsp cinnamon

• 1/2 teaspoon allspice

• 1/4 teaspoon cloves

• several grinds of the pepper mill

• ⅓ cup coarsely chopped pistachios

• the scrapings from the extra artichoke leaves in the pot, plus the chopped stems if they’re tender. If they’re stringy, just toss them into the trash

For Roasting:

• 4 large globe artichokes, trimmed and parboiled, with the choke removed (see instructions above the photo)

• olive oil for the bottom of the dish.

• ½ cup white wine (If you haven’t got any on hand, just leave it out. But it’s nice…)

• ½ teaspoon chicken bullion paste or powder

• 1 cup boiling water

Method:

• In a large skillet, warm the olive oil add the onions. Sauté until they just begin to turn golden. (You will want to stir them now and again.)

• Add the bread crumbs and continue to cook, stirring, until the bread crumbs are beginning to brown. If it’s too dry, add a little more olive oil

• In a bowl, combine the lamb with all the remaining ingredients and knead it well with your hands.

• Add the seasoned lamb to the pan with the onions and bread crumbs and cook until the lamb loses its pink color, breaking it up with a spatula as it cooks.

  TO STUFF THE ARTICHOKES

Before you start, I recommend you divide the stuffing into 4 piles, so you know how much each artichoke should get. The stuffing is rich; don’t over-stuff! Starting at the base of your prepared artichoke and going around in a spiral, tuck a little stuffing into the inside of each leaf. You can be respectable and use a spoon, but I find that clean fingers work best …

When you get to the center, fill it with a little more stuffing.

TO ROAST THE ARTICHOKES

• Preheat oven to 350°

• Choose a baking dish just big enough to hold all four artichokes snugly.

• Pour a little olive oil into the dish, just enough to coat the bottom nicely.

• Add the wine and the stock, or bullion combined with 1 cup water.

• Place your stuffed artichokes into the pan and cover the whole pan tightly with aluminum foil. Tent the foil and don’t let it touch the artichokes. You want enough air space for the artichokes to steam.

• Slide the pan into the oven and leave them to cook for 45 minutes.

• Then, remove the foil and roast for another 15 minutes or so, until the artichokes look browned and crispy at the edges. Serve with an empty bowl on the side, for collecting the spent leaves.