Baked Artichokes with Edamame and Sweet Peas

It was early morning when we packed up a few of our things and headed north to the Tom's Thumb Trail, (picture above). The day started early and we finished before noon. Everywhere we looked, the rocks, the views and the wildflowers captured our attention. The hike is strenuous but in every way worth it. We finished off our day with this dish and it was perfect.

Another recipe adapted from Ottolenghi, The Cookbook. Follow the link here for the original recipe, ingredients and measurements that I also found published in The Guardian, in their food and drink section. With this particular dish he suggest serving as a starter with a hearty crusty bread. I imagine a light drizzle of olive oil and lemon slices to finish. Frozen artichoke bottoms can be substituted for the fresh artichokes.

Ingredients:

5 lemons, (4 to juice, 1 to thinly slice)
2 large globe artichokes
2 bay leaves
2 sprigs of thyme
2 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
1 teaspoon pink peppercorns.
1/2 cup white wine
Olive oil
3/4 cup edamame
3/4 cup frozen sweet peas
1 bunch flat leaf parsley, rough chopped
Salt and pepper to taste

To prepare:

Preheat oven to 400°. Juice the lemons and discard all but 2 of the empty lemon halves.

To clean artichokes, cut off most of the stalk and start removing the leaves by hand. Once you reach the softer leaves, cut in half lengthwise then cut down until you reach the heart and scrape it clean of the hairs. Place in cold water and stir in half of the lemon juice.

Drain the artichoke slices and spread them out on a baking tray. Add remaining lemon juice, the 2 reserved lemon halves and all the rest of the ingredients except edamame, sweet peas and parsley. Cover with foil and bake for 45-60 minutes or until the artichokes are tender. remove from the oven, take off the foil and let the artichokes cool down.

In the meantime, fill a large saucepan with plenty of cold water and bring to the boil. Add the edamame and blanch for 5 minutes, then drain in a colander to dry.

Remove artichokes from oven, add edamame and peas. Stir in lemons slices and parsley. Taste for salt and pepper, sprinkle with peppercorns and serve. Enjoy!