Digital Paper: Crumbs, March 2008

Crumbs, March 2008

Artichoke on Flickr

A Most Delicious Thistle: the Italian Artichoke

One of my favorite memories is visiting Francesco Vincenzo Calcagno, my Italian grandfather and my only living grandparent, and learning the family recipes. After my grandmother died, my mom and I would make frequent trips to Oceanside to visit him, help around the house and provide life and company to an otherwise very quiet house. My favorite way to spend time with my grandfather is in the kitchen, making one of a few dishes he remembers from his younger days: meatballs and red sauce, eggplant parmigiana, pickled peppers, and stuffed artichokes are the absolute best and my favorite foods. Of course I savor the smells and tastes of these recipes, but most of all, the stories my grandfather told while making these dishes are the biggest gift of all, providing a basis for an adult relationship with him, rather than the childhood interactions I was afforded with my other grandparents, as they died when I was not yet an adult. Of all ten grandchildren, I’m the only one who knows these family recipes. I document one here for myself, my family, and future generations to come, so as not to lose these authentic Italian-American flavors that remind me of family, celebrations, and home.

Calcagno Family Artichoke Recipe
Documented by Jennifer Marinace as taught to me by Francis Calcagno

Ingredients: four tightly closed artichokes
1 lemon, if you want to prepare artichokes ahead of time
8-12 cloves garlic
1 bunch fresh Italian or curly parsley
4 teaspoons salt
4 teaspoons pepper
½ cup olive oil

Tools: a saucepan, stockpot, or Dutch oven, large enough for all four artichokes to sit side by side, plus lid
Sharp knife
Kitchen shears
Cutting board
Stove or barbecue with burner
A turkey baster or substitute a ½ cup dry measuring cup with handle

To prepare artichokes, cut the stem end off, creating a flat base so the artichoke can stand upright. Peel and cut end off of stem to add to pot; it’s almost as good as the heart. Cut at least one inch of the top end off. With kitchen shears, trim the prickly tips off the leaves that remain.

Bring artichokes to the sink and wash. Open the leaves and make sure to get the water down into the crevices, as dirt can hide there on occasion. If the artichokes are especially dirty between the leaves, submerge them in cold water into which you’ve squeezed a lemon and soak for ten minutes, agitating the artichokes occasionally to loosen the dirt. You’ll need to weight the artichokes to keep them submerged. A plate works well. Flip over and drain. If you will be preparing the artichokes in advance, rub the outside of the artichokes, especially the cut parts, with lemon and store in lemon water in the fridge until ready to stuff and cook.

Wash and chop parsley, minus stems. Peel and slice each garlic clove into four to six long, thin, flat pieces. Divide the parsley and garlic into four equal piles, each containing a quarter of the parsley and a quarter of the garlic. Take one artichoke in hand and begin to stuff with garlic, pushing the thin slices down between the leaves. Work your way from the outside to the middle, stuffing every fourth leaf or so. When ¼ of the garlic is used, stuff with the parsley, the same leaves with the garlic or others, making sure to stuff the very center with both a piece of garlic and a generous portion of the parsley. When finished, place the artichoke in your pot, which should contain about two inches of water. Repeat with all artichokes until you have a pot containing all four stuffed artichokes.

Bring pot to the stove and place over high heat. Now, sprinkle the top of each artichoke very generously with salt, using way more than you think would ever taste good. Don’t worry; you won’t be consuming all this salt. Most of it will end up in the cooking water. My grandfather, mother, and I never actually measure. We just pile the salt on. I have estimated one teaspoon per artichoke. Do the same with the pepper. Finally, pour olive oil over the top of each artichoke to fill the spaces between the leaves with oil and some of the salt and pepper. Again, I never measure, and it takes more than you would think.

Cover the pot and bring to a boil. When the water comes to a rolling boil, reduce heat to medium-high, to continue the rolling boil. Cook for one hour, basting artichokes with the cooking water every ten minutes. You’ll know they’re done when a leaf pulls off easily and is soft at the tip. Depending on the size of your pot, you may need to add water to the pot. Make sure the water remains at least an inch deep. Also, periodically move the artichokes along the bottom of the pan to prevent burning. If you notice the artichokes sticking to the bottom of the pot, turn down the heat a bit and consider adding more water. Before serving, taste the cooking liquid. If it is mouth puckeringly salty, add some water. You do want it to taste salty, but not to make you wince.

Serve in a bowl with a little of the cooking liquid poured over the top. Peel leaves from around the outside to enjoy, and when you get one with a slice of garlic and/or parsley, you’re in for a particular treat. Eat the garlic, too. It’s cooked so long, the flavor will be very mild. My grandmother loved these artichokes so much she use to chew on the entire leaf, rather then just scraping the meat off onto her teeth, as she didn’t want to miss one ounce of deliciousness.

Enjoy a taste of Naples, via New York, Pennsylvania, and Oceanside, CA.

Serves 4 ordinary people or two artichoke lovers!
Preparation time: approximately 30 minutes
Cooking time: 60 minutes

Jennifer Stenger Marinace, 2008

Summer Institute 2007. Jennifer, an aspiring writer from a young age, teaches seventh grade English at Robert Louis Stevenson Middle School in St. Helena while residing in Santa Rosa with her husband. When not teaching or writing, Jennifer enjoys taking ballet classes, trying new recipes, learning about new places, history, and human experiences through reading, nurturing life via gardening, and discovering new places by traveling with her husband. She loves kids and looks forward to having some of her own one day.

HAIKU

Sumptuous delight
Your liquor upon my plate
Dark sweet chocolate

©Tureeda Mikell, 2007

Tureeda Mikell is a professional storyteller, poet performer and writer. A BAWP '96 Fellow, her work with California poets in the schools garnered her production of over sixty anthologies. Widely published, and read among the top poets in the country, her works are broadly used in the P.D. curriculums of poetry. She currently works with the Oakland Literacy Project, California Poets in the Schools, Alameda County and StageBridge.

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