Category: appetizers

December 5, 2007

Artichokes with Sundried Tomato and Marjoram Stuffing

I’ve wanted to make stuffed artichokes for a long time, but the idea of prepping artichokes always gave me a dull headache. My mom used to make them all the time when I was younger, simply steamed with some melted butter. We’d fend for ourselves once we got to the artichoke heart, covered in spiky fuzz (the choke), a clear reminder that we were really eating an overgrown thistle.

But when you stuff artichokes, it’s usually best to remove the nasty choke ahead of time to make room for stuffing, which also makes eating the artichoke a little less complicated. That way, when you get to the heart you can dig right in without getting a mouthful of fuzz.

If you’ve never eaten a whole artichoke before, let me implore you to try it, and to not eat the leaves. Well, that’s not entirely right. You eat part of each leaf, scraping off the flashy bit at the base with your bottom teeth. Or your top teeth. Just make sure you don’t pop a whole leaf in your mouth. Set an empty bowl on the table to collect the spent leaves.

The leaves start off with only a little of the good stuff on the bottom. The artichoke may seem like a tease, giving you only tiny tantalizing morsels at first, but I promise you; this is one vegetable that puts out in the end, every time. The closer you get to the center, the more edible the leaves become. You’re finally rewarded with the heart of the artichoke, and what a delicious treat that is. It’s well-worth messily eating your way towards it.

But before you can eat it, you need to prep it. There are two things you need to know, right off the bat. The first is that artichokes oxidize, turning color once the cut edges are exposed to air, much like apples and potatoes do. Keep a cut lemon nearby and rub the exposed edges of the ‘choke with it to prevent this. The second thing to remember is to keep the ‘chokes away from anything made of aluminum of iron – this will also cause the artichoke discolor. Use stainless steel knives and cookware, or anything else that’s non-reactive, such as glass. Ready?

Remove the bottom few rows of leaves with a knife. These are the toughest and can be discarded.

Remove the stem of the artichoke, so it can stand upright. Rub the bottom with lemon juice.

Slice the top inch or so off. It’s okay if it’s not perfectly flat.

Rub lemon on the cut edges to prevent discoloration.

Cut the tips off any leaves that still have their points. They have sharp bits on the end that you want to remove before eating.

Gently spread the leaves apart with your fingers to expose the center. Sometimes the center leaves are purple as shown, but sometimes they’re just a delicate yellow.

Remove the leaves, scraping them out with a spoon. The sharper the edge, the better off you’ll be. If you have a melon baller, use that. My 1/2 teaspoon measure worked better for me than a regular spoon.

Now you should see the top of the choke, the fuzzy part you don’t want to eat. Use your spoon to scrape out the fuzzy bits out until you reach the smooth surface of the heart.

Be careful not to remove too much of the heart, as that’s the best part of the artichoke! Take your time, and be sure to sqeeze lemon juice down there while you’re working.

While you’re prepping ‘chokes, let the finished ones sit in a bowl of cold lemon water.

Stuffed Artichokes with Herbed Sundried Tomato Stuffing
For two artichokes

2 Artichokes, prepped as shown above

Stuffing
2 Cups Breadcrumbs
4-5 Tbs Fresh Chopped Herbs, I used Marjoram
1/3 Cup Chopped Sundried Tomatoes, oil packed
1/4 tsp Salt
Black Pepper, to taste
Olive Oil

Broth for Steaming
3 Cups Water
1 Vegetable Bullion Cube
3-4 Lemon Slices
1 Bay Leaf
Black Pepper

Toss all the ingredients of the stuffing together, save the olive oil. Drizzle the olive oil into the stuffing mixture until just moistened.

Fill the center cavity of each artichoke with stuffing. Use the remaining stuffing in between the leaves of each choke. Spread the stuffing out as evenly as you can, stuffing in as many leave crevices you can get into.

Place broth ingredients in the bottom of dutch oven large enough to fit the ‘chokes. Set the ‘chokes inside, making sure the broth level only covers an inch or so of the bottom of the ‘chokes. Simmer, covered, for 30-45 minutes, or until the leaves are tender and can be removed with a gentle tug.

Preheat oven to 350Âº, and bake the steamed chokes for 10-15 minutes until the stuffing is crispy and browned. Serve immediately.

November 27, 2007

Aloo Parathas

Indian food has intimidated me more than any other cuisine. Only recently have I begun to experiment with it, but I’m still completely overwhelmed with the vast amount of things I don’t know about: there are ingredients I’ve never heard of, approximately one hundred bajillion types of lentils (I counted), endless variations on dishes between regions of India, culinary traditions that vary from family to family, and a number of different languages used to describe all these things. I could spend my entire life studying Indian food and always be learning something new.

The good news is I don’t have to know everything to start making dinner. Thank god.

When it comes to cooking, there’s no better place for me to learn than in the kitchen with someone who knows what’s what. A few months ago, I had the opportunity to learn a bit about Indian cooking at the home of my husband’s boss, Nars. Nars and his family are from India, and they graciously invited us over for dinner, allowing us to hang out in the kitchen and learn how to make the dishes we would be eating. It was an invaluable experience for me, and today I want to share with you some of what I learned that night.

Flatbreads are common in India, with numerous variations. There’s roti, puri, parathas, chapatti, naan, bhakri, bhatoora, papadum… I’m sure the list goes on. Today I’m going to show you how to make parathas, both plain and stuffed with spiced potatoes. Parathas are my favorite — they’re flavorful, easy to make, easy to customize, and they go with a lot of different main dishes.

The first thing you’ll need is the right kind of flour. It’s often referred to “duram atta.” It’s a combination of stone-ground wheat and regular flour that’s perfect for roti, chapatti, and parathas. The brand I use is Golden Temple. Once you have the flour, you’re set. Here’s the recipe for the dough:

Paratha Dough
Makes 8 parathas

1 Cup Golden Temple Flour (duram atta)
1/3 — 1/2 Cup Water
1/2 tsp Salt
2-3 tsp Oil

Combine all the ingredients in a medium sized mixing bowl. Depending on the humidity in your area and how compacted your flour is, you’ll need anywhere from 1/3 to 1/2 cup of water. Add 1/3 cup first, adding more water if needed. Your goal is to achieve a soft, elastic dough after about 5 minutes of kneading. It shouldn’t be sticky, but smooth. I don’t sift my flour, so my “1 cup” tends to be a heavy one, and I use 1/2 cup of water to get the dough consistency I like the best. Keep in mind that a softer dough will yield more tender bread, but may be harder to control. After kneading, the dough should look like the image above.

Break the dough up into 8 equal pieces, rolling into balls. Set in a small, oiled bowl and cover with some oiled plastic wrap. Let the dough balls rest for as long as you can – 30 minutes up to a few hours. This allows the gluten to relax. If you’re making aloo parathas, begin making the potato mixture now.

Aloo Stuffing
For 8 Parathas

2 Medium Potatoes
1/2 tsp Salt
1/2 tsp Garam Masala
1/2 tsp Cumin Seeds
1/4 tsp Turmeric
1/4 tsp Red Chili Flakes
5 Sprigs of Cilantro, chopped

Peel, chop and boil potatoes until fork tender. Drain well. Use a ricer or food mill to mash potatoes. This ensures there are no lumps in your potatoes that could break the dough while stuffing the parathas. Add in the remaining ingredients and mix well. Form 8 balls the same size (or smaller) as your dough balls, cover, and set aside.

Now for the fun part! It’s time to stuff and roll out the dough. Before you start, heat your pan up and get your workspace ready. Choose a pan that heats quickly and evenly, has a non-stick surface, a wide, flat bottom and low sides. It ideal pan for this is usually seasoned iron. The traditional pan is called a tawa, but a crepe pan, pancake pan, or cast-iron skillet works just as well. For your workspace, you’ll need a bowl full of flour, a cutting board or other flat surface for rolling out the dough, and a small rolling pin called a Belan. (Or do what I did and use a clean, label-less beer bottle.)

Heat your pan over medium heat with a very light coating of oil.

For Aloo Parathas

Dip one of the dough balls in the flour to coat it.

Flatten it out into a disc.

Roll out the dough a little, so it’s large enough to cover the potato ball. Wrap a potato ball with the dough, gathering the edges together.

Pinch the edges together to seal, flattening it into a disc again.

Dip it in the flour again, coating all sides.

Roll out the disc evenly into a circle, roughly six inches in diameter. The dough should be thin enough so you can see the spices through it.

Place the paratha on your heated pan. You’ll see the dough begin to change color (it gets slightly yellow and dry-looking), and then, with any luck, it’ll puff up! Once it puffs up, check the bottom–if you see scattered brown dots, flip the paratha over. Oil the cooked side of the paratha lightly. Cook the second side until it looks like the first, flip it again, and oil it. Your paratha should be finished cooking in 1-2 minutes, and should not look raw when it’s done. Keep warm in a tortilla heater, or in a low oven on a covered plate.

Do you want to make plain parathas? I got you covered. There are two ways I was taught to fold the parathas to make sure they’re tender and flakey. Follow the link below for step-by-step photos of both techniques!
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