Wednesday 12 February 2014

Artichokes stuffed with mushrooms

Being in a middle of the season for artichokes, it's quite difficult to pass by the stalls sagging under, as beautiful as any flower, artichokes. This is one of the reasons they have appeared on my table today. This versatile vegetable can be served in many ways: raw, boiled, fried, breaded, grilled, etc., but for me, the best ones are these baked with a little bit of olive oil and salt. Eating artichokes prepared in this way is, kind of entertaining, because it involves peeling the outer leaves - which are too hard to eat them -, to finally get to their delicate and melting in your mouth centre, called the heart (in Spanish corazón).

Today, however, I suggest the recipe for artichokes stuffed with fried mushrooms and onion, topped with grated cheese and then grilled in the oven. But before starting to prepare them, I have some practical tips for you:
  • Artichokes will keep fresh longer if you store them wrapped in a plastic bag, in refrigerator.
  • It's better to wear rubber gloves when preparing them to prevent dark spots on your hands.
  • After peeling, artichokes turn black very quickly, so it's advisable to put them in water with lemon juice.



Ingredients (serves 4):

4 artichokes
300 g mushrooms
1 small onion
grated cheese (I used Parmesan cheese)
1 tablespoon olive oil
salt and freshly ground pepper
1 lemon cut in half
parsley for garnish





Method:

Fill a bowl with water and squeeze the juice from half the lemon into it. Cut the stems off the artichokes, trim off the tips of the leaves and remove the hard external leaves. Cut the bases flat and put them into the bowl with water.

Bring a large pan of salted water to boil, add the artichokes and when the water returns to boil, reduce the heat to low, cover and let simmer for 20-30 minutes, or until tender. Drain them well and place upside down on paper towels to drain.

Heat the olive oil in a frying pan. Add finely chopped onion. After 2-3 minutes, add finely chopped mushrooms. Fry for 10 minutes, or until the water evaporates. Season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Meanwhile, use a long spoon to scoop out the hairy choke of artichokes. Fill them generously with the mushrooms (you can mix the mushrooms with grated cheese if you like). Sprinkle the grated cheese on top and grill the artichokes in the oven until the cheese is melted.










Enjoy !!!

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