Wednesday, March 31, 2010

Baby Artichokes - Baby, baby!



Baby artichokes equal WOW! I've never really cooked with artichokes because they are quite frankly confusing. However, I had no such problems with baby artichokes. I made up a quick and easy pasta recipe with this little guys. Honestly, I think these suckers may be one of my favorites now. If you get the chance to by some baby artichokes at a Farmers Market, definitely give this recipe a try:


Baby Artichokes Parmesan with Marinara & Pasta
2 servings

Ingredients
10 baby artichokes, trimmed
3 cloves of garlic, smashed
1 tsp Italian seasoning
3 tbsp grape seed or olive oil
1 cup water
3/4 cup Italian bread crumbs
1/2 cup Parmesan cheese
1 tsp dry basil
1/2 a can/bottle of marinara sauce
1/2 a package of your favorite pasta (I used whole wheat fettuccine, James used cappellini)

Directions
Start a pot of bowling water for your pasta (as directed by package) and heat the marinara on low in a small sauce pan (cook while these while you make your artichokes).

Trim the baby artichokes (click here for a step by step lesson) and rise with cold water.


Heat 1 tbsp grape seed or olive oil, crushed garlic and Italian seasoning in a medium sauce pan over medium heat until garlic is soft. Add baby artichokes to the pan, sauté for 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of water to the pan and cover for 10-15 minutes (or until the bottom of the artichoke can be punctured by a fork). Strain artichokes and garlic and place in a bowl.


Mix Italian bread crumbs, parmesan cheese and basil in a low bowl. Coat baby artichokes with bread crumbs (feel free to smash some of the bread crumbs in between the leaves) and fry in 2 tbsp grape seed or olive oil in the medium sauce pan over medium heat.


Fry for 6-8 minutes or until the artichokes are crispy brown. Throw the garlic into the marinara sauce.


In your bowls place half the pasta, marinara sauce, and 5 baby artichokes on top (feel free to throw in any left over bread crumb crispies from the frying pan). Sprinkle with the left over parmesan cheese and ENJOY!

No comments:

Post a Comment