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!