Artichoke

This classic Greek soup is one of my favorites when I want to “lighten up” from a gustatory standpoint. It makes the perfect chicken soup substitute when you are just not feeling up to snuff, or a good light dinner when you’ve had enough of the restaurant-and-fine-dining circuit. It is traditionally made with chicken broth and small bits of chicken, but I think the meatless version yields even truer, clearer flavors. A touch of ground cumin adds yet another dimension to the flavor.

“What’s the advantage to cooking artichokes in a slow cooker?” you might ask. The answer is that while the artichokes are cooking, you’ve bought yourself a big chunk of time to do other things while the chokes cook completely unattended. If you are like me, you may get no further than pulling the chokes out of the pot with tongs and sitting down to them with a nice serving of homemade garlic-tarragon mayo. But I’ve given a few other suggestions in case you get bored.

This classic stew, menestra de verduras, has many regional variations, and can be made with different vegetables according to season. Constant ingredients include potatoes, carrots, and green peas; artichokes are the most characteristic. Fresh artichokes are called for in traditional recipes, but using the canned variety simplifies the process.

Primavera means “spring” in Italian. Pasta Primavera is a wonderfully colorful, light, and healthy meal filled with springtime vegetables. Almost any vegetable will go well in this dish. Consider adding English peas, sugar snap peas, spinach, asparagus, or other seasonal vegetables. Any type of squash or bell pepper is tasty as well. It doesn’t matter whether your artichoke hearts are frozen or packed in water or oil, but remember that the oil from marinated artichokes will add a powerful punch. If you like heat, 1/4 to 1/2 teaspoon red pepper flakes can give this dish more of a kick. If there is still liquid in the bottom when the pot comes out of the oven, let it sit with the lid off for a few minutes, which will release some steam and allow the absorption of more of the liquid. Spoon any remaining liquid over each serving as a sauce.

While my mother wouldn’t be caught dead serving jarred marinara sauce, I’ve found quality organic brands speed up prep time and taste as good as homemade. Sometimes I’ll doctor the sauce with fresh tomatoes, zucchini, or green peppers from the garden. Or I’ll add roasted green chiles (available frozen, canned, or fresh in the fall) or red pepper flakes for a flavor boost. If using a nondairy cheese, be aware that brands containing casein retain more of the creaminess associated with real cheese than those without. While the presence of casein shouldn’t affect most lactose-intolerant people, it is an animal product and could cause those allergic to dairy to have a reaction. Instead of using prepared marinara sauce, you could stir the herbs directly into a can of crushed tomatoes and pour this mixture over the layers of eggplant.

Feel free to experiment with cheeses besides Parmesan. Try mozzarella, feta, or provolone—each makes a completely different meal. Fresh wild mushrooms, such as chanterelle or shiitake, add a complex, earthy flavor, but dried mushrooms work well, too, and may be easier to find. I like to keep dried wild mushrooms in my pantry for spur-of-the-moment dishes. Sometimes I place them in a bowl, cover with boiling water, and let sit for fifteen minutes to soften, then drain and use. Other times I simply chop the dried mushrooms and throw them into the pot for a chewier version that adds another texture to the meal.

Puttanesca is a traditional pasta dish that supposedly had its origins in the food prostitutes cooked for themselves at the end of the night. The amount of spice called for here makes a medium-spicy dish. Adjust it according to your own taste. Although anchovy paste (or minced anchovies) is called for, don’t worry if you don’t have any or just want to leave it out. A tip: Do not lift the lid “just to check” before this meal is done or it will take longer to cook and your pasta may not come out perfectly al dente. This recipe works equally well with fresh or frozen shrimp. Instead of broccoli and artichoke hearts, try this with spinach or green beans. Consider red bell peppers, zucchini, yellow squash, or eggplant as well.

Kalamata olives and/or capers would be lovely additions to this meal. Add them with the cherry tomatoes. You can also use a whole red snapper if you find one that fits in your Dutch oven. I like to use canned or frozen artichoke hearts packed in water, though marinated artichoke hearts packed in herbed olive oil would add another layer of flavor to this meal. And any white wine is fine to use here. I often use a Chenin Blanc or a Sauvignon Blanc simply because those are what I like to drink.

There is something pleasantly sensual and mindful about eating an artichoke all alone, dunking each leaf in a tart, buttery sauce and scraping off that little bit of flesh, then getting to the bottom and carefully removing the prickly thistles to the heart. I remember loving this as an adolescent and always asking for an artichoke when I knew I would be home alone and could relish each bite. If you’re feeling in a cooking mood, make yourself a little hollandaise sauce (page 110) to go with this treat.

Bluefish and mackerel are both rather fatty fish, and they take well to broiling, particularly when the fillet sits on a bed of flavorful vegetables and they exchange flavors. I also like this preparation because it requires only one pan. If it’s a handsome fireproof baking dish, it can come right to the table. Otherwise, scoop everything up with a spatula and serve on a warm plate.

Every Christmas, Crystal’s family (the Cook side) gets together for a holiday party at her Aunt Mary Ann’s. Since the family is so large, it’s the one time of year that everyone makes the effort to be there to visit with one another. Everyone brings a dish for the buffet, and we all eat like kings and queens. Crystal’s Aunt Sonja is known as one of the family’s best cooks. Always aiming to impress her guests, she relies on this side dish to do just that. And if you ever thought asparagus was boring, you’ll change your mind once you taste it all dolled up with shallots, artichokes, and baby portobella mushrooms. It’s a real showstopper.

Baby arties are much easier to prepare than big ones and you don’t end up with nearly as much waste. They’re a perfect side when they’re in season—they go beautifully with meat or fish and just scream springtime. Whenever I tell people I’m making artichokes they go, “Ohhh! Artichokes!!!” They just sound exciting.

Omelets make a wonderful meal any time of day. This omelet is just right for those summer evenings when the next thing you know the sun has just gone down and it’s nine o’clock.

I love this dip for company because you can whip it together and put it in the oven just as your guests arrive. In the time it takes to stow their coats and serve them drinks, the dip becomes hot and bubbly and can be brought from the oven straight to serving, trailing along with it an enticing aroma of warm Parmesan cheese and artichokes. If you have time, prepare the dip by processing it in the food processor, place it in the baking dish, cover, and refrigerate it overnight. With time, the flavors blend and become even better. If you don’t have that kind of time, don’t worry! This is still a creamy, tangy, wonderful dip even when pulled together at the last possible minute.

The glistening vegetables in bright shades of green and orange in this garlicky dish are a reminder that summer’s just ahead. Frozen shelled edamame (fresh soybeans) are available in natural food stores and many supermarkets. We like to keep a bag on hand to add to soups, stews, and sautés.

Feta cheese, garlic, and artichoke hearts are some of our favorite ingredients; here, they’re combined in a very simple pasta dish that packs a lot of flavor. For this dish, we make an instant creamy sauce by stirring hot pasta-cooking water into feta.