Artichokes cooked in oil, garlic and parsley

When artichoke season is in full swing, make the most of it and buy a box worth: you will find that the various ideas for dishes and meals are simply not to be missed! It’s true that sometimes cleaning them is a bit boring and you probably won’t feel like doing it, but then when you see the results from the kitchen you’ll know that it’s been worth it. When you’re cleaning them, take care to place them in water with added lemon juice to prevent discoloration. If you don’t want to end up with black hands, use rubber kitchen gloves or, alternatively, after cleaning the artichokes rub your hands with a wedge of lemon. So, buy yourself a good quantity and set to work ... one day you’ll make them with risotto, another day with pasta, and then with lasagna, omelettes, they can be stuffed, used as a filling for crepes and so on and so forth! Today we suggest a recipe for artichokes cooked with chopped garlic, anchovy, parsley and oil, a really delicious side dish with a delicate flavour, perfect for the whole family, to be served as an accompaniment to meat or even fish dishes. With just a few simple ingredients just mentioned, blended into a sauce, and added to a properly prepared and cooked artichoke, you can make this succulent dish. And if there’s any sauce left, you can mop it up with a thick slice of rustic bread!

Prepare a bowl of water mixed with lemon juice, leaving in it some whole lemons too which will act as antioxidants for the artichokes. Peel the artichokes, cut them in half, but don’t entirely cut the stems: leave 3 cm or so attached to the bottom of the artichokes for aesthetic effect. Put them quickly in the lemon water before they go brown. While they are soaking, prepare the sauce. As we have seen in other recipes, put the onion, anchovies, parsley, garlic and oil in a narrow, high container designed for a an electric hand blender. Blitz everything together. Now, heat a suitably sized saucepan with a little oil and add, once hot, the onion and the previously prepared artichokes. After about a minute, not more, add a few tablespoons of the sauce depending on how many artichokes you are making and a little water (around the amount which covers the bottom of a glass), so that the onion does not burn. Cover the pan and cook for twenty minutes. When they are cooked but still al dente, add another tablespoon of sauce.