Grilled Artichokes ala Jules

Fresh off the grill
photo courtesy of Julie 

Of late, our Whole Foods Market has had the most beautiful - and ginormous - artichokes. They're called ~long-stem artichokes~; something I'd never heard of or had seen. They were also on sale (hate paying $4.00++ for them), so I picked some up for our din-din. Steamed them the old fashioned fat-filled way (because of the butter, people, the butter, not the artichoke), and they were delicious. And so huge, they were shared and we all had more than enough to satisfy our bellies.

Of course, cousin Jules had to have her way with the long-stem 'chokes she bought. Needless to say, she created another culinary masterpiece (she's good at that). They were over-the-top delicious! And on top of that? They were healthy! Whoda thunk an artichoke could actually not be drowned in butter or hollandaise and still be delicious??

The T'nG:

long-stem artichokes (regular ones will do as well)

olive oil

lemon juice
lemon zest

fresh ground black pepper

salt to taste

shredded romano/parmesan cheese

Steam/boil the artichokes until just done. (Julie cut off the long stems, trimmed off the tough outer layers with a vegetable peeler and steamed them along with the whole artichokes.) Let them cool enough so you can handle them without burning the heck out of yourself. When cool, cut the artichokes in half. With a knife and spoon remove the choke (the inedible fibrous middle of the artichoke). In a separate bowl, mix together the olive oil, lemon juice and zest, pepper, salt and the parmesan cheese (amounts are up to you - yup, a T'nG at its finest!). Brush the mixture all over the halved 'chokes being sure to get marinade between the leaves. When you're ready, heat the grill to a high heat. Place the artichoke halves on the grill, cut side down. Grill until it's beginning to brown (see above), turn over, sprinkle the top with the cheese, close the grill and cook until cheese is beginning to melt and the bottom is beginning to brown. Serve hot off the grill or at room temperature. If there are leftovers (doubtful) rewarm them in the oven.

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Yum!

'till we feast again!

xoabb

Shaping the Trout Cakes

Remy shaping the trout cakes into patties

When we went home to Columbia, MO last summer, I found that my mom and daughter had discovered a new cookbook, Cooking Wild in Missouri, that is printed by the Missouri Department of Conservation. Rem took one look at it (it's beautifully photographed) and declared she was going to "cook the book". A worthy endeavor! The recipes are spot-on, and the ingredients Missourahhh wonderful! The first recipe she made was the following trout cakes. 

Columbia happens to have an over-the-top-wonderful farmer's market and there's a gal that comes up from the Ozarks each week who sells fresh farmed trout. The day we were there, we bought two extra trout knowing we wanted to try this trout cake recipe the next evening. We were not disappointed. Oh no, not in the least were we disappointed! 

Missouri ~Crab~ Cakes

Actually these are Missourahhh trout cakes made New England crab cake style. What could be better than that? (As I said, this recipe is from the cookbook written by Bernadette Dryden and titled "Cooking Wild in Missouri". It's only $15.00. Do yourself a favor and buy it! Now!) Ms. Dryden serves this over a salad with a citrus vinaigrette (recipe follows) - and so did Remy. Delicious!

The T'nG:

1 cup picked over trout (no bones allowed) (left over from previous grilled meal)

1 cup breadcrumbs (homemade preferred)

4 tablespoons fresh grated Parmesan or Romano cheese

2 scallions, finely chopped
1/2 red pepper, finely chopped

1 gargantuan tablespoon finely chopped parsley

1 heaping teaspoon of fresh Bum hot or other hot red pepper

juice of one fresh lemon

salt and fresh ground pepper to taste

2 tablespoons unsalted butter

Mix trout well with 1/4 cup of the breadcrumbs and the next 7 ingredients, through the salt and pepper. Your mixture will be moist. Form into 2 inch wide patties. Dip patties in the remaining bread crumbs and pat all over. Fry in the butter over medium heat, cooking until the bottom side is golden brown. Carefully turn over and brown the other side.  Toss your salad greens with the citrus vinaigrette dressing. Serve 1 - 2 trout cakes on top of the salad. 

~

Citrus Vinaigrette Salad

fresh mixed salad greens

extra virgin olive oil

fresh lemon juice

fresh garlic, finely chopped

salt and fresh ground pepper

Wash salad greens, dry and put in salad bowl. Mix approximately 3 parts oil to 1 part lemon juice. Add a touch of garlic and whisk vigorously. Season to taste with the salt and pepper and whisk again. To test, dip a piece of lettuce in the dressing. Correct seasonings. 

Put salad on a plates and the add two trout cakes per plate. 

From: "Cooking Wild" by Bernadette Dryden (Missouri Department of Conservation, 2011)"

~~~

YUM!

'till we feast again! 
xoabb