AUTHENTIC  ITALIAN  RECIPES

 FROM

 RISTORANTE  d'ANNAMARIA

Artichokes with potatoes is probably going to scare you off for one or both of two reasons.  You've never worked with fresh artichokes and don't have a clue as how to prepare them or you've had artichokes somewhere and they were tough and too fibrous to enjoy.  If the latter is your gripe, the ones you had were cleaned and prepared improperly. I'll tell you how to clean them properly.

Ingredients for four people:

Artichokes                                20

Potatoes                                    3 pounds

Garlic                                       4 large cloves

Parsley (fresh or dried)              a handful (fresh) or 2 tablespoons

Olive oil (extra virgin)              3/4 cup

Salt                                           to taste

How to do it:

Excellent - If you've read this far you're seriously thinking about giving this recipe a shot.

OK. Let's start with the artichokes.

Wash each one and cut it in half horizontally so that you have formed a sort of shallow cup.

Pull out all of the fuzzy "stuff" in the center of each artichoke. (This is the choke).

With a very sharp knife or scissors start trimming the remaining leaves on an angle so that what you have left resembles a Christmas tree. (The leaves that remain should all be tender and very easy to tear. It'll seem like you're discarding most of the vegetable and you are.)

Cut the remaining part of the artichokes (the heart) into quarters by cutting vertically from top to bottom.

Soak them in water with a little lemon juice to help them keep their fresh color.

Peel the potatoes, rinse them, and cut them into fairly large pieces. (They'll probably get smaller as they cook)

Boil the potatoes until they're about half done.

Drain the potatoes and put them aside for now.

Put the olive oil in a large frying pan and brown the garlic over medium heat.

Add the artichokes to the garlic and oil along with about a cup of water and cover the frying pan.

Cook the artichokes over medium heat until they are very tender and all the water is evaporated- stirring occasionally.

When the artichokes are tender remove the lid of the pan and brown the artichokes to a light brown color stirring constantly.

Add the potatoes and parsley and cook with the artichokes until tender. (You may need a little more water-it depends on your pan)

Salt to taste.

Serve hot.