Under a prickly skin, pure potential

Not too long ago my wife and I rented a house for the weekend in the seaside dunes north of Monterey. Out the front window all we could see was the ocean, seemingly just yards away. There wasn’t a back window, but if there had been one, all we would’ve seen was a sea of artichokes -- acres and acres of them.

The ocean was beautiful, of course. But I kept finding myself wondering what was going on out back.

For years, I’ve been fascinated by artichokes. And while I understand that my passion is not universal, I think that’s more a function of other people not understanding how wonderful these vegetables truly are (as opposed to being just another of my food monomanias).

As I see it, the problem is one of preparation (the artichoke’s, not the cook’s). Most people’s artichoke repertoire is limited to two recipes: boiled or steamed.

There is nothing wrong with either of these. I had a steamed artichoke just recently -- my first in years, actually -- and it was very nice indeed, especially with a little herbal mayonnaise in the center.

But there is more to the artichoke than a handy dip holder. And with the last meal of our vacation coming up, it seemed the perfect opportunity to explore some of those possibilities.

The friends with whom we were sharing the house were all wine pros, so there was going to be some pretty nice stuff served. Because of that, I thought it would be best to use the artichokes for appetizers, where they’d be paired with a really fresh Fino Sherry. Artichokes contain a chemical, cynarin, which makes everything taste sweeter. This is death on most wines, but Fino can stand up to just about anything.

But restricting them to appetizers eliminated a couple of my favorite artichoke preparations. I like to braise them as a side dish (quarter, cook over medium heat in a covered pan with oil and water, garlic and parsley, until tender; remove the lid, turn up the heat and cook off the liquid until the artichokes begin to brown).

For the same reason, risotto and pasta were out of the picture.

I thought about doing some marinated artichokes, a spin on the old French a la grecque technique, but since there would be some pickled fish as well (those amazing little Spanish boquerones), that seemed a little much.

For a while I was pretty excited about making one of those salads of shaved raw artichokes. Yeah! Yeah! That’s the ticket! And for a finishing touch, I could serve it in frico cups.

At its most basic, frico is like a potato chip made from Parmesan cheese. The cups couldn’t be simpler to make, and they are delicious (well, fried Parmesan ... how could they be bad?). They are also shapeable when warm, like a tuile. Drape the hot chips over a shot glass or a cork and they’ll cool into a nice little cup.

Despite my exuberance, I did recognize that raw artichokes are an acquired taste, so I made up a little sample of the salad to try on my wife. “These are raw artichokes,” she said, her tone of voice making it clear that she did not mean that in a nice way.

“But I’ll serve them in frico cups,” I pleaded -- if there’s anything that can swing a family food argument my way, it’s the prospect of fried cheese.

“Maybe some other time,” she said, sipping her Champagne.

So it was back to the drawing board, but this time with the Parmesan chips stuck firmly in my mind. Well, I thought, if we’re going to do one fried appetizer, why not two?

So I cleaned another couple of artichokes and cut one in quarters and one in eighths. I filled a pan with about an inch of olive oil, just enough to float the chokes. I drained the artichokes and patted them dry. Then just to make sure there was no water on the surface, I dusted them very lightly with flour, shaking them in a strainer to get rid of any excess.

When the oil was hot, I dropped in a handful of the artichokes. There really are few pleasures in cooking that can compare to the merry whoosh of hot oil that good frying produces. It’s even better when you’re doing it in somebody else’s house so you know you won’t have to smell it for the next several days.

When the artichokes were well-bronzed, I retrieved them, patted them dry and sprinkled them with salt. The quartered chokes were good -- crisp with a perfectly steamed center. But I liked the thinner ones even better, particularly for serving with the frico. They were practically weightless, the high heat of the frying having dried all the interior moisture. It was like taking a bite of crisp, artichoke-flavored air.

These recipes have the advantage of using baby and medium-sized artichokes, which can be a real steal. Baby artichokes are about the size of large eggs; mediums are about the size of a man’s fist.

There is nothing infantile about the babies. Every plant throws up a variety of sizes of artichokes. There will be only a couple of the biggies. Because they are scarce, they are expensive, $2 a piece and up.

There will be several more mediums and many more babies, and their plenty is reflected in their price. I almost never recommend individual stores, but one of the best buys in food right now is at Trader Joe’s, where -- thanks to an arrangement with the Ocean Mist growers’ cooperative, they’re selling four medium artichokes for $1.69 and 2-pound bins of babies for $1.89. That’s less than a quarter the price of anyplace else.

And that’s almost as good as having a whole field of them at your back door.

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Marinated artichokes

Total time: 1 1/2 hours

Servings: 8

2 onions

1/2 cup olive oil

2 pounds baby artichokes

1 carrot, thinly sliced

4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced

1 teaspoon fennel seeds

1 teaspoon black peppercorns

1 1/2 teaspoons salt

2 bay leaves

2/3 cup white wine vinegar

2/3 cup white wine

About 1 cup water

1. Slice the onions in 1/2-inch rings, keeping the rings whole as much as possible. Put them in a large skillet and cover them with the oil. Cook over low heat 15 minutes.

2. Pare the artichokes as described, leaving them whole and keeping them in a bowl of lemon water until ready to use.

3. Add the carrot and garlic to the onions, cover and cook over low heat until the onions are softened, 15 minutes more.

4. Add the artichokes to the skillet, cover and cook over low heat 5 minutes.

5. While the artichokes are cooking, combine the fennel seeds, peppercorns, salt, bay leaves, vinegar and wine in a small saucepan and bring to a full boil. Pour the mixture over the artichokes in the skillet and add enough water so the liquid comes about 2/3 of the way up the sides of the artichokes. Cover and cook at a fast simmer until the artichokes are tender enough that a small sharp knife penetrates the base easily, about 20 minutes.

6. With a slotted spoon, remove the artichokes to a bowl. Increase the heat to high and cook until the liquid has reduced to a light syrup. You’ll know it’s done when the liquid barely covers the bottom of the pan and begins to stick slightly.

7. Pour the liquid over the vegetables, cover tightly and refrigerate about 30 minutes or until ready to use. The artichokes are best served cool, or at room temperature.

Each serving: 237 calories; 498 mg. sodium; 0 cholesterol; 14 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 25 grams carbohydrates; 2 grams protein; 3 grams fiber.

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Cream of artichoke soup

Total time: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Servings: 8 to 9

4 medium artichokes (about 2 pounds)

1 small onion (about 1/2 pound), diced

3 tablespoons olive oil

1 carrot, diced

4 cloves garlic, minced

1 medium boiling potato (about 1/2 pound), diced

1 teaspoon salt

4 cups chicken broth

1/4 cup whipping cream

2 egg yolks

Parmesan chips or grated Parmesan, for serving, optional

1. Pare the artichokes as described. Cut into quarters and keep in a bowl of lemon water until ready to use.

2. Cook the onion and the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat until the onion begins to soften, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot, reduce the heat to medium-low, cover and continue cooking until the carrot has softened, another 5 to 10 minutes, being careful not to let the vegetables brown.

3. Add the garlic and the potato and cook another 5 minutes. While the vegetables are cooking, chop the artichoke quarters into 1/2-inch pieces and add them to the saucepan. Add the salt and cook, covered, 10 minutes to begin marrying the flavors.

4. Add the broth and bring the mixture to a simmer over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to medium-low and cook until the vegetables are soft enough that you can smash them between your fingers, 25 to 30 minutes.

5. Transfer the soup mixture into a large mixing bowl and wipe the saucepan clean. Puree the soup in a blender on high speed until light and smooth, about 30 seconds. Do this in 3 additions to keep from overflowing the blender. As each batch is pureed, pour it through a fine strainer into the saucepan. Stir the soup that’s in the strainer to help it pass through. Return the saucepan to medium-low heat.

6. In a bowl, stir together the whipping cream and the egg yolks until smooth. When the puree has neared a simmer, spoon 1/2 cup of it into the cream/egg mixture and whisk until smooth. This “tempers” the egg yolks, cooking them slightly, so they won’t curdle when added back to the saucepan.

7. Slowly whisk the cream/egg mixture back into the saucepan and continue to cook, whisking frequently, until the soup has thickened slightly and the texture has become silken, about 5 minutes. Do not let the soup boil or the egg will curdle.

8. Ladle about 1/2 cup of hot soup into a small soup bowl and garnish with a crisp Parmesan chip or grated Parmesan in the center.

Each of 9 servings: 145 calories; 648 mg. sodium; 56 mg. cholesterol; 9 grams fat; 3 grams saturated fat; 13 grams carbohydrates; 5 grams protein; 3 grams fiber.

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Parmesan chips

Total time: 15 minutes

Servings: 8 chips

Note: These chips can also be made by baking them at 325 degrees for 10 to 12 minutes on a nonstick baking sheet or baking pan. The result is lacier and more delicate, and the flavor is not quite as “browned,” but this method is incredibly easy.

1 cup freshly grated Parmesan

1. Measure the cheese into 1 1/2-tablespoon mounds in a large, dry nonstick skillet. Leave plenty of space in between; you’ll be able to cook 4 to 5 mounds per batch. Gently spread each mound into a thin round with your fingers. Heat the skillet over low heat until the cheese melts. It will begin to bubble and finally, after 3 to 5 minutes, it will begin to brown around the edges. Sliding the tip of a fork or a thin spatula under one edge, flip the chip and continue cooking until the second side is lightly browned, 3 to 5 minutes.

Each serving: 46 calories; 186 mg. sodium; 8 mg. cholesterol; 3 grams fat; 2 grams saturated fat; 0 carbohydrates; 4 grams protein; 0 fiber.

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Simplest fried artichokes

Total time: 30 minutes

Servings: 8

Note: Using a decent but not great olive oil adds a nice flavor note. These are good served with Parmesan Chips.

1 pound baby artichokes

Olive oil

1/4 cup flour

Sea salt

1. Pare the artichokes as described, cutting them in quarters and then each quarter in half again lengthwise to make 1/2-inch slices. Keep them in a bowl of lemon water until ready to use.

2. Heat about 1 inch of oil in a large heavy pot over medium-high heat to about 360 degrees.

3. Meanwhile, drain the artichokes in a strainer and turn out into a tea towel. Pat them dry as thoroughly as you can. Return them to the strainer, and shake them, gradually pouring the flour over top. Keep shaking to remove the excess flour (it’s best to do this over the trash can; all that flour is messy to clean out of the sink). The artichokes should be barely covered with a film of flour.

4. If you don’t have a thermometer, determine if the oil is hot enough by adding a single artichoke piece to the pan; the oil should bubble merrily. Add the artichokes to the oil a small handful at a time. Don’t overcrowd the pan or the oil will dip below a good frying temperature; it’s much better to fry in small batches. (For a pound of artichokes, figure 3 or 4 batches.) When the artichokes are golden, about 2 to 3 minutes, remove them with a slotted spoon or Chinese skimmer. Tap the spoon against the side of the pan to shake off excess oil, then drain on a paper towel. While hot, sprinkle them with salt and serve immediately. To serve all at the same time, keep them warm on a paper towel-lined baking sheet in a 350-degree oven.

Each serving: 58 calories; 20 mg. sodium; 0 cholesterol; 5 grams fat; 1 gram saturated fat; 4 grams carbohydrates; 1 gram protein; 1 gram fiber.