12 artichokes, medium, fresh
2 lemons, juice and rinds salt pepp
3 cup olive oil
Directions
Carciofo All Guidia To quote the author, "This is the most famous of
all Italian Jewish foods. It originated with the Roman Jews, and owes
its fame to having been served at a restaurant in the Roman ghetto
where it was discovered and quickly adopted by connoisseurs of
excellent food all over Europe. Utimately it found its way into many
Italian cookbooks, My mother, a Jewish woman who was born and raised
in Rome, prepared especially delicious Carciofi all Guidia (better
than you could find in any restaurant!). I watched her prepare them,
and have prepared them myself, practically all my life. Here in my
mother's technique in detail"
Trim the artichokes as detailed in "How to clean artichokes- Jewish
style" and keep them in lemon water till you are ready to use them.
"Drain the two artichokes and, holding one in each hand by the stem
and bottom, gently hit the leafy parts against each other until the
leaves of one open up a little. Place the opened artichoke, bottom
up, on a board or a working surface. Drain another artichoke from its
bath and repeat what you did with the first two, and line up the one
that opens next to the last one. Continue until all the artichokes
are opened up. The last one will have to be tapped against the board.
In a small bowl, combine salt and pepper. Take one artichoke at a
time and sprinkle all over, including between the leaves, with salt
and pepper mixture. Heat the oil in a deep earthenware or similar
saucepan. Cook as many artichokes at a time as fit in one layer over
moderate heat for 20 to 25 minutes, or until the bottoms and the
sides are well browned. During the cooking period, sprinkle some cold
water over the artichokes to produce steam, so that the inside will
be cooked, too. To do this the authentic way, have a bowl containing
cold water near the range. Dip your closed fist in the water and then
open it forcefully over the roasting artichokes. Repeat sprinkling
several times. When all the artichokes are done, transfer them to a
plate, bottom side down to keep the moisture in.* Pick them up at the
bottom with a fork and dip them, one by one in the hot oil again,
pressing the leaves to the bottom of the pan. The artichokes will
open up like roses and the leaves will become golden and crisp. Serve
immediately.
NOTE: Although traditionally Carciofi alla Giudia are served piping
hot, they are delicious at room temperature.
*Up to this point you may prepare the artichokes several hours ahead
of time and keep them, bottom side down, so that they do not lost
their moisture. Should they become too dry, sprinkle some cold water
on them when reheating and press the leaves down against the bottom
of the pan.
Servings: 6 servings
Artichokes Jewish Style Recipe brought to you by Recipe Ideas
Categories: Jewish; Vegetable
The History of Recipes
Written cooking instructions as an idea can be tracked way back into the far past, certainly as far back as the Egyptians, and quite possibly further than that. Interesting though that is, in the main part, these ancient cook books were just very basic pictorial, hieroglyphic or cunieform instructions for preparing food.
In an interesting twist, the oldest recipe found, according to experts are a few clay tablets in the Sumerian language which describe the preparation of bread which is then used to make a drink, quite possibly a form of beer as it is recorded as making drinkers feel exhilarated. Progressing into The time of the roman empire 25BC a roman called Apicius created a few documents describing recipes prepared by wealthy roman citizens. In his scrolls, he tells us how the roman meals were divided into appetizers, entrees and dessert, something that is very familiar to us today. Additionally, he recounts how the early Romans were skilled in the use of a wide range of spices and herbs, including some familiar names for example bay, rue and dill. Later on in the 1400s, people returning from the crusades brought us many foods and herbs from the East, including spices such as basil and coriander. These new culinary innovations led to an outbreak in publications on food, some of which are now in private cookery archives. By the time we get to the 20th century, cookery books are in great demand, mostly as a result of increased literacy, increased leisure time and having more disposable income. The introduction of the TV gave us TV cookery programs and the demand for the accompanying recipe books. Which pretty much brings us up to date and the invention of the internet, permitting everybody to access thousands of recipes just like those on this site. |
We hope you enjoy this Artichokes Jewish Style recipe.
