It’s late. It’s been a long weekend, and tomorrow is Monday. So, here’s a very quick post. There wasn’t much, if any, food in this movie. But, the line “it seems the artichoke is steamed” was enough for me. Would I recommend you make this? Maybe. Not because it isn’t delicious. In fact, it was really tasty. But, it’s a complete pain-in-the-ass for such little in quantity of food. That is also the reason I will only eat crab cakes and never sit around pulling crab: gross. I also got some chokes stuck between my thumbnail and flesh and it’s not fun because even though I got the chokes out, there is still the sting of lemon juice to contend with. Anyway, here’s the recipe I used from The New York Times.
Steamed Artichokes with Lemon Butter
2 large artichokes, or 4 medium artichokes
1 whole lemon, halved, plus 2 tablespoons lemon juice
1 garlic clove, finely grated or minced
Large pinch of kosher salt
4 tablespoons melted butter
Pull off the loose layers of leaves and any browned ones from the bottom half of the artichoke.
Using a very sharp knife, cut away the top 1-1.5” of the artichoke.
Using vegetable peeler, peel away the tough outer stem skin. Then cut away the bottom half inch of the stem.
Halve a lemon and rub lemon juice on the stem and the flat, top portion of the trimmed artichoke.
Start opening up the artichoke (you can be pretty forceful here) and loosening it so you can get to the center choke portion.
Using a sharp paring knife, start cutting around the bottom of the center choke portion. Then use a pointy spoon to scoop the choke out. Run the artichoke under cool running water to disperse any loose choke fronds. Shake the artichoke well to ensure the stringy choke is removed.
Squeeze a little lemon juice and spread it around the interior. Repeat with remaining artichokes.
Place some water in the bottom of a pot and place the colander or steamer basket inside.
Place the artichokes cut-side down and turn the heat to medium-high. Cover the pot and allow the water to just come to a boil.
Lower the heat and steam the artichokes for 45 mins to 1 hour and 15 mins until tender.
Meanwhile, in a small bowl, whisk together the lemon juice, garlic and salt. Slowly whisk in butter.
To serve, have everyone pull off the leaves and dunk the meaty bottoms into the lemon butter, swirling to mix butter with each dip.
If you are unfamiliar with how to consume artichoke leaves, just lightly suck the meaty portion (part originating closest to the stem) from the leaves, and discard the leaf afterward. You don’t chew on it.
______________________________ Copyright 2025, Brendan McCann, All Rights Reserved.
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