Cardoons Recipes

CARDOON GRATIN

Steps:

• Combine heavy cream, chicken broth, and bay leaf in a large saucepan; season with salt and pepper. Add cardoon pieces. Bring mixture to a boil; reduce heat and simmer until cardoon is soft, about 1 hour.
• Transfer cardoon pieces to a 9x13-inch baking dish with a slotted spoon.
• Preheat oven to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C).
• Simmer cream mixture until reduced to 3/4 cup, 5 to 10 minutes. Pour cream over cardoon pieces in the baking dish. Sprinkle Gruyere cheese on top.
• Bake in the preheated oven until top is browned, about 30 minutes.

HONEYED CARDOONS WITH PINE NUTS AND THYME

Steps:

• Trim the cardoons and boil them for 30 to 40 minutes in salty water with the juice of 2 lemons thrown in. This can be done up to a day ahead.
• Slice the cardoons into 1/2 inch pieces. Slice the onion into half-moons. Toast the pine nuts - watch them, as pine nuts go from toasted to burnt in a heartbeat.
• Heat the olive oil in a large sauté pan over medium-high heat. Sauté the onions with some salt until just beginning to brown on the edges. Add some salt. Add in the cardoons and stir to combine. Let this cook for a minute or two.
• Add the dry sherry. If you don't have dry sherry, use a dry white wine. Turn the heat up to high and boil it furiously. Add the honey and stir to combine. Add the pine nuts. Let this boil down to a glaze. Turn off the heat and toss in the thyme and add some fresh ground black pepper. Toss well to combine and serve at once.

BUTTER-BRAISED CARDOONS WITH MUSHROOMS AND BREAD CRUMBS

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of water to boil and salt it moderately. Strip the cardoons of leaves and string as you would celery. Cut each stalk lengthwise into 2 or 3 long strips, then crosswise into 2-inch lengths. You'll have about 3 cups. Squeeze the lemon juice into the water and boil the cardoons until fairly tender, 10 to 12 minutes; drain and rinse.
• Melt the butter over medium heat in a skillet wide enough to accommodate the cardoons comfortably. When the foam subsides, add the cardoons, reduce the heat to medium-low and cook, stirring occasionally, until they take on a bit of color, 10 to 12 minutes. Add the garlic and mushrooms and continue to cook until the mushrooms are mostly tender, 5 minutes. Add the bread crumbs and a pinch of salt and raise the heat to medium-high; cook, stirring occasionally, until the bread crumbs brown a bit and the cardoons are fully tender and sweet, 5 minutes longer.
• Squeeze a bit of lemon juice over the top, taste for salt, add pepper to taste and serve hot or warm.

FRIED CARDOONS

Steps:

• Discard any discolored outer stalks and small leaves from cardoons. Trim base, tips, and outermost stalks, removing strings from stalks with a vegetable peeler (as for celery), then cut cardoons crosswise into 2-inch pieces.
• Soak cardoons in 2 quarts water with 1 tablespoon salt in a large bowl, chilled, at least 8 hours.
• Drain cardoons. Transfer to a 6-quart pot, then generously cover with cold water and add 2 tablespoons salt. Bring to a boil, then simmer, uncovered, until tender when pierced with a sharp knife, 20 to 25 minutes. Drain on several layers of paper towels and cool 5 minutes.
• Heat about 1 1/2 inches oil to 360°F in a 4- to 5-quart heavy pot over medium heat.
• Whisk together flour and 1/4 teaspoon pepper in a shallow bowl. Whisk together eggs, water, and cheese in another shallow bowl.
• Toss one fifth of cardoons (all at once) with flour, shaking off excess, then transfer to egg mixture and turn with a fork to coat. Lift out coated cardoons 2 at a time, letting excess drip off, then carefully drop into hot oil. When all of batch has been added, fry, turning occasionally, until golden, 2 to 4 minutes. Transfer with a slotted spoon to fresh paper towels to drain.
• Coat and fry remaining cardoons in 4 batches. (Return oil to 360°F between batches.) Season with salt.