Italian Artichoke Braid Recipes

ITALIAN HERO BRAID

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 400°. In a large skillet over medium heat, cook and crumble Italian sausage until no longer pink, 4-6 minutes; drain., Meanwhile, dissolve yeast in warm water. In another bowl, combine 1-1/2 cups flour and butter; add yeast mixture. Beat on medium speed until smooth. Stir in enough remaining flour to form a soft dough. , Turn onto a lightly floured surface; roll into a 13x10-in. rectangle. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Layer cheese and salami slices down center of rectangle; top with crumbled sausage and shredded cheddar. On each long side, cut 1-in.-wide strips about 2 in. into the center. Starting at 1 end, fold alternating strips at an angle across filling. Pinch both ends to seal., Whisk egg white; brush over pastry. Bake until golden brown, 25-30 minutes.

NONNA'S ARTICHOKES

Steps:

• Cut the stems and tops off each artichoke. Remove the tough outer leaves. Snip the ends off the remaining leaves with scissors to remove thorns. Remove the tough exterior of the stems and cut them in half. Set aside.
• Combine bread crumbs, pecorino Romano cheese, mint, garlic, salt, and pepper in a bowl. Drizzle with olive oil and mix well.
• Wiggle an artichoke back and forth with your thumbs to open the leaves. Stuff the bread crumb mixture between multiple leaves and in the center. Repeat with the second artichoke.
• Place artichokes and stem pieces in a large pan that has a tight-fitting lid. Add wine and water to the pan, making sure not to wet the artichokes. Cover and bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer and cook until you can easily pull an outer leaf off an artichoke, about 1 hour.

ANTIPASTO BRAID

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°. In a small bowl, toss olives, artichokes, tomatoes, 2 tablespoons Parmesan cheese, 2 tablespoons oil and basil until combined., On a lightly floured surface, carefully unroll French loaf dough; roll into a 15x10-in. rectangle. Transfer to a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan. Layer prosciutto, provolone cheese and red peppers lengthwise down center third of rectangle. Top with olive mixture., On each long side, cut 10 strips about 3-1/2 in. into the center. , Starting at one end, fold alternating strips at an angle across filling, pinching ends to seal. Brush with remaining oil and sprinkle with remaining Parmesan cheese., Bake 30-35 minutes or until golden brown. Let stand 10 minutes before cutting. Serve warm.

ITALIAN STUFFED ARTICHOKES

Steps:

• Rinse artichokes well, tugging leaves outward to loosen slightly for stuffing.
• Trim off stems so artichokes sit on a flat surface.
• Trim off the pointed tips of each leaf.
• Set aside.
• In a large bowl combine bread crumbs, cheese, parsley, garlic salt, and pepper.
• Mix well; slowly add the oil till the crumb mixture is moistened enough to stick together.
• You may need to adjust the amount of oil depending on the type and amount of bread crumbs used.
• Stuff each leaf of the artichoke, starting from the bottom and working your way around, with crumb mixture.
• Stuff desired amount of leaves and shake off excess mixture.
• Continue this step with remaining artichokes.
• Place artichokes in a large baking pan and fill bottom of pan with 1/2 to 1 inch of water.
• Drizzle olive oil over top of stuffed artichokes and cover tightly with heavy duty foil.
• Cook on 375 degrees for approximately 60-80 minutes (depending on size of artichoke) or until leave comes out easily.
• Cool for 10 minutes; serve and Enjoy!

ROBERT GALANO'S ARTICHOKES ITALIAN-GRANDMOTHER STYLE

Steps:

• Cut stems off bottom of artichokes; peel and save. Pound bottom of each artichoke on table (not so hard that they squash) two or three times to open leaves. Cut off points of artichokes and snip side points with scissors.
• Cut garlic into a total of 20 pieces. Punch (with finger or end of wooden spoon) one piece of garlic down into center of each artichoke (You may have to separate the leaves a bit with your fingers) and three more pieces between outside leaves.
• Repeat with the parsley.
• Cut stems in two and stuff one down each center like garlic and parsley. If stems are too long, cut off part.
• Place artichokes in a pot so they gently touch the sides and each other. Be careful not to pour water into artiichokes; pour enough into pot to reach half way up the sides of the artichokes. Add three or four tablespoons olive oil, basil and oregano to water.
• Add an additional tablespoon of olive oil to center of each artichoke. Season with salt and pepper.
• Cover pot and cook over high heat until boiling; reduce heat to simmer. Simmer 45 minutes to one hour until a center leaf removes easily. Do not overcook. Drain and reserve liquid.
• Serve at room temperature or chill overnight and bring to room temperature before serving.

ITALIAN ARTICHOKE BRAID

Steps:

• Measure carefully, placing all ingredients except Artichoke Filling and cheese in bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer.Select Dough/Manual cycle. Do not use delay cycles.Remove dough from pan. Knead 5 minutes on lightly floured surface (if necessary, knead in enough flour to make dough easy to handle). Cover and let rest 10 minutes. Prepare Artichoke Filling.Grease large cookie sheet. Roll dough into 12x8-inch rectangle. Place on cookie sheet. Spoon filling lengthwise down center third of rectangle sprinkle with cheese. On each 12-inch side, make cuts from filling to edge of dough at 1-inch intervals, using sharp knife. Fold ends up over filling. Fold strips diagonally over filling. alternating sides and overlapping in center. Cover and let rise in warm place 20 to 40 minutes or until double. (Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.)Heat oven to 400°. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm, or cool on wire rack.Mix all ingredients.1 slice: 155 calories (45 calories from fat) 5g fat (2g saturated) 10mg cholesterol 300mg sodium 22g carbohydrate (1g dietary fiber) 6g protein.NOTE: If Italian seasoning isn't a blend you keep on your shelf, use 1 teasponShapingMake cuts from filling to edge of dough at 1-inch intervals. Fold strips over filling, alternating sides and overlapping at center.For Artichoke Filling: Mix all ingredients.Note: If Italian seasoning isn't a blend you keep on your shelf, use 1 teaspoon dried basil, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and a dash of ground red pepper (cayenne) instead.From "Betty Crocker's Best Bread Machine Cookbook, The Goodness of Homemade Bread the Easy Way." Text Copyright 1999 General Mills, Inc. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.

ARTICHOKES BRAISED IN OLIVE OIL

Steps:

• In a bowl, combine parsley, mint, garlic, and 1 tablespoon olive oil. Season with 1/2 teaspoon salt and 1/4 teaspoon pepper.
• Rub artichoke hearts inside and out with herb mixture. Place them stem-side up in a medium pot. Add remaining 1/4 cup olive oil and enough water to come halfway up the sides of the artichoke hearts.
• Place pot on the stove over high heat and bring to a boil. Reduce heat to low, cover pot, and simmer until artichokes are tender, about 20 minutes. Remove from heat and add remaining herbs. Cool completely in the cooking liquid.
• Divide artichoke hearts onto four plates, and serve at room temperature with some of the liquid spooned over the top.

ARTICHOKE BRAIDED BREAD

Steps:

• Finely chop artichoke hearts.
• Add garlic, 1/4 tsp salt, pepper, olive oil& mix; set aside.
• Add artichoke mix, rest of salt and flour to bread machine and mix until it has gone through the rising process, do not bake in bread machine.
• Once dough is ready, remove from bread machine onto a floured cutting board or wherever you want to work with the dough.
• Split dough into four sections.
• Roll two balls into two narrow log shapes, at one end pinch together and braid.
• Complete the same step with other two logs.
• Tuck the pinched ends under the braided bread.
• Place the braids on baking sheet/s, with a brush, brush the beaten egg evenly over breads and bake in a 350 oven until lightly brown, about 30 mins.

ITALIAN ARTICHOKE BRAID

Steps:

• Measure carefully, placing all ingredients except Artichoke Filling and cheese in bread machine pan in the order recommended by the manufacturer.Select Dough/Manual cycle. Do not use delay cycles.Remove dough from pan. Knead 5 minutes on lightly floured surface (if necessary, knead in enough flour to make dough easy to handle). Cover and let rest 10 minutes. Prepare Artichoke Filling.Grease large cookie sheet. Roll dough into 12x8-inch rectangle. Place on cookie sheet. Spoon filling lengthwise down center third of rectangle sprinkle with cheese. On each 12-inch side, make cuts from filling to edge of dough at 1-inch intervals, using sharp knife. Fold ends up over filling. Fold strips diagonally over filling. alternating sides and overlapping in center. Cover and let rise in warm place 20 to 40 minutes or until double. (Dough is ready if indentation remains when touched.)Heat oven to 400°. Bake 20 to 25 minutes or until golden brown. Serve warm, or cool on wire rack.Mix all ingredients.1 slice: 155 calories (45 calories from fat) 5g fat (2g saturated) 10mg cholesterol 300mg sodium 22g carbohydrate (1g dietary fiber) 6g protein.NOTE: If Italian seasoning isn't a blend you keep on your shelf, use 1 teasponShapingMake cuts from filling to edge of dough at 1-inch intervals. Fold strips over filling, alternating sides and overlapping at center.For Artichoke Filling: Mix all ingredients.Note: If Italian seasoning isn't a blend you keep on your shelf, use 1 teaspoon dried basil, 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano, 1/4 teaspoon dried rosemary, 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder and a dash of ground red pepper (cayenne) instead.From "Betty Crocker's Best Bread Machine Cookbook, The Goodness of Homemade Bread the Easy Way." Text Copyright 1999 General Mills, Inc. Used with permission of the publisher, Wiley Publishing, Inc. All Rights Reserved.