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The Kitchen Garden Cooking School

Artichoke


Globe artichokes can be prepared two ways, either by steaming the whole artichoke, plain or stuffed with seasoned breadcrumbs, then the leaves are peeled off one by one, dipped in butter or sauce, and the fibrous inner part at the bottom of each leaf is consumed by scraping it off with your teeth. Once the petals are removed the heart is exposed (we've all been there) and the scary hairs encircling it are scraped off before consumption, all with exquisite table manners. The second method to peel a raw artichoke down to the heart and top portion of the stem, discarding the fibrous leaves and bitter choke, all while rubbing every exposed surface with a lemon. A labor-intensive vegetable which is why jarred artichokes are used so frequently. I prefer them packed in water over oil with not too much vinegar which can affect the final dish.

Artichoke

The Lovers

Our vegetables are polyamorous, flitting from love affair to love affair.
However, they do marry well with the ingredients below.

Oils

Avocado, olive, safflower, sunflower seed

Butters

Unsalted butter, unsalted cultured (European-style) butter, clarified butter

Aromatics

Onion, shallot, leek, garlic, carrot, celery, celeriac

Vegetables

Asparagus, shelling beans, snap beans, carrots, celeriac, celery, eggplant, fava beans, fennel bulb, mushrooms, peas, potato, spinach, summer squash, sweet bell pepper, Swiss chard, tomato

Fresh Mushrooms

Chanterelle, cremini, oyster, king oyster, white button

Fresh Herbs

Basil, bay leaf, chervil, chives, cilantro, dill, fennel, hyssop, lovage, marjoram, mint, nepitella, oregano, parsley, rosemary, sage, sorrel, summer savory, tarragon, thyme, winter savory, za’atar

Dried Herbs

Bay leaf, dill, hyssop, marjoram, mint, oregano, rosemary, sage, summer savory, thyme, wild marjoram, winter savory, za’atar

Cheeses

Soft or Crumbly Cheeses: Chèvre, feta, fromage blanc, fresh mozzarella, ricotta

Semi-Soft Cheeses: Fontina, mozzarella, Taleggio

Hard Cheeses: Gruyère, Manchego, Swiss

Grating Cheeses: Asiago, Grana Padano, Manchego, Parmigano Reggiano, Pecorino Romano

Spices

Cardamom, coriander, cumin, black peppercorns, sumac

Spirits

Dry sherry, vermouth, white wine

Umami

Fresh mushrooms, tomatoes, tomato paste, grating cheeses, wine

Zing

Citrus: Lemon, orange, Meyer lemon, preserved lemons

Vinegars: Champagne, sherry, white wine, herb vinegars

Specialties: Capers, harissa, hot pepper sauce

Ground Chili Peppers: Aleppo, cayenne, Maraş pul biber, paprika, Hungarian half-sharp paprika, Hungarian sweet paprika, hot smoked paprika, sweet smoked paprika, red pepper flakes, urfa biber