Easter Sunday--and not a rabbit in sight!

Well, this has been an unusual holiday for me, because I did not invite the immediate world for dinner. Instead I planned a very relaxed day at home, complete with a good film to watch and some favorite foods to graze on. Stuffed artichokes are delicious and quite time consuming to prepare but with just two for dinner-no problem. If you have never cooked artichokes before, you may be a bit spooked by the way they look but be brave, they are just a vegetable after all.

At the grocers select firm tightly closed artichokes that are not turning brown around the edges, and if they are damp wipe them off with a paper towel. {my grocery store has a roll of paper towels hanging in the vegetable aisle for customer use} Store them in the refrigerator and use them soon because they do not store well. Now for the fun part! You will need a very sharp knife, a pair of scissors and a cutting board. If you are preparing more than two at a time you also will need a large bowl of cold water with the juice of a lemon added. As you prepare the artichokes drop them into the water. Drain each one well before stuffing them.

The stuffing is a simple mixture of bread crumbs {you can use the "Italian" kind}, a good handfull of grated romano cheese,
some garlic powder, and black pepper. Add olive oil gradually until the bread crumbs begin to clump together. You don't want a wet mixture. Put the stuffing aside.

Now you need to snip the ends off of each leaf because there are little thorns on those ends and they are VERY sharp. Next lay the artichoke on it's side and cut off the stem so that the base is flat. Then with the artichoke still on it's side slice about one inch off the top as well. You now have an artichoke that is almost ready to stuff. The next trick is to separate the leaves just enough to make space for the stuffing. My mother taught me to press the artichoke, top down using an open hand and pushing gently. I usually use a wooden cutting board for this part also.

Okay now--- the next step is messy so be prepared to sweep up crumbs after you are finished. Using a teaspoon and holding the prepared artichoke in one hand put a little of the stuffing between as many of the leaves as you possibly can. The artichoke will begin to grow larger as you work because of the stuffing. Finish stuffing all of them, and then decide how large a pan you will need. Put about two inches of water and a drizzle of olive oil in the pan and then squeeze those babies in nice and tight! Cover the pan, bring to a boil and then turn the heat down to a simmer. They will need to cook for about forty five minutes and you need to check the pan occasionally to make sure the water has not boiled away.

To test the artichokes to see if they are done, carefully pull one leaf out, and if it can be removed easily the artichokes are cooked. Of course you should not waste the piece you have pulled so eat it. Do you know how to eat an artichoke? Put the leaf in your mouth bottom end first and pull the leaf out between clenched teeth! Sounds barbaric doesn't it? If indeed it's tender you should remove the artichokes from the pan with a large slotted spoon and put them on a tray or separate serving dishes. Allow them to cool a bit. Provide separate bowls for well chewed leaves and lots of napkins.

While the artichokes were bubbling away we enjoyed some smoked salmon with horseradish sour cream, as well as steamed shrimp. Some plain crackers served with garlic hummus rounded out the platter. We sipped a bit of wine, watched our film, and before we knew it the artichokes were ready to serve! Yummy.
{I know--I said that we would talk about hummus! another tIme.}