Friday, May 13, 2011

Steamed Artichokes and Aioli

Artichokes are like hedgehogs- prickly and ferocious on the outside, cuddly on the inside.  I know many people are put off by the artichoke’s confusing exterior, so this week we thought we’d lay out a simple steamed artichoke recipe along with easy, how-to-eat instructions for anyone unfamiliar with this vegetable.  This is one of the most addicting vegetables, and it’s the perfect summer food!

Steamed Artichoke
2 artichokes
2 cloves garlic, roughly chopped

How to cut an artichoke:
Using a serrated knife, cut off most of the stem (you can leave about an inch of stem on the artichoke if you’d like).  Also cut about two inches off of the tip of the artichoke, so that all the layers of petals are exposed.

Place the artichokes snugly together, stems-up, in a pot of simmering water.  You only need a few inches of water in the pot – the artichokes should not be completely submerged.  Add the roughly chopped garlic to the water; this infuses the artichoke with a yummy hint of garlic.  Cover and simmer for about 45 minutes, until the stem of the artichoke is tender and the petals are easily removed.

Aioli
¾ c. mayonnaise
juice of ½ lemon
3 cloves minced garlic

Combine ingredients in a bowl and mix thoroughly.

How to eat an artichoke:
Remove and discard the outermost petals near the stem of the artichoke – these petals don’t taste great.  To eat the petals, hold them by the outer “pointy” end, and dip the fleshy end in aioli.  Pull the petal through your teeth to get the meat, and then discard the petal. 

When you get to the center of the artichoke under the little purple petals, you can simply take a spoon and scoop out the seeds to discard them.  Underneath those seeds is the delicious artichoke heart (attached to the stem), which is the best part!





Thursday, May 5, 2011

Mixed Berry Cobbler

Most people eat cobbler as a dessert, but Parisa and I eat it for breakfast.  Following a Joy of Cooking's "Fluffy Biscuits" and "Mixed Berry Cobbler" recipes we whipped up this delicious cobbler in no time.  I usually don't make pies or cobblers because they seem to involve too many steps, but this recipe is hassle free and scrumptious. Try it for yourself!



As a final touch we added vanilla ice cream. Ice cream and berry cobbler are a match made in heaven. :)


Wednesday, May 4, 2011

Spinach Ricotta Pie with Homemade Ricotta Cheese





















This week we prepared a dish from the Moosewood Cookbook.  This spinach ricotta pie is similar to a quiche, but with more ricotta than eggs.  The recipe calls for one pound of ricotta cheese, so we decided to experiment in making our own cheese for the first time.  It was surprisingly easy, although you do have to own a cheesecloth.  If you don't want to take the time to make your own ricotta, this recipe still tastes delicious with store-bought cheese.  Next time we're thinking about using goat's milk in the cheese, for a little more flavor.


How to make Homemade Ricotta:  There are simple instructions on this website:
http://www.recipegirl.com/2010/05/17/how-to-make-ricotta-cheese/

Ricotta Cheese

Ingredients for the Spinach Ricotta Pie are available here, on Mollie Katzen's website:
http://www.molliekatzen.com/recipes/recipe.php?recipe=ricotta


spread sour cream to the corners of the pie

dust with paprika