Steamed artichokes with lemon vinaigrette

Artichokes are beautiful and absolutely delicious, but I remember the first time I tackled an artichoke – it was a daunting task. I felt like I kept trimming and trimming, and in the end there was barely anything left! I’ve always loved eating artichokes but after that experience, I almost swore off cooking them again anytime soon.

Luckily, these steamed globe artichokes are not at all intimidating and I’ll show you a simple technique for trimming them using a paring knife and a pair of kitchen scissors.

You’ll need:

• 4 globe artichokes
• 1/2 lemon
• 2 cloves garlic
• 2 tbsps olive oil
• 1 tsp  wholegrain mustard
• 1 tsp white vinegar
• salt, to taste

1.  Put a medium-sized pot of water (that fits your steamer basket) on the stove and bring to a boil. Add in a little bit of salt and a tsp of vinegar.

Wash the artichokes and trim off the stem completely with a paring knife. Use scissors to trim off the thorny leaves and rip off the tougher outside leaves completely.

2. Cut artichoke in half, exposing the choke (the fuzzy part!). This part becomes easier with practice: reach behind the pink/purple leaves and pull towards you, pulling out the choke. With you paring knife, slice off the remaining fuzz on the artichoke heart.

3. Sprinkle artichokes with salt and a light squeeze of lemon before putting into the steamer basket. Steam until tender, about 45 min to an hour.

4. While the artichokes are steaming, make the vinaigrette. Dice the garlic. In a small bowl, combine garlic and olive oil. Squeeze remaining lemon juice into the bowl. Add the mustard and whisk to emulsify. Taste and adjust seasoning as necessary.

5. Dip the artichoke pieces into the vinaigrette – makes a simple, but sophisticated snack.