Artichoke Bottoms Stuffed With Spinach And Walnut Puree Food

SPINACH STUFFED ARTICHOKE BOTTOMS

Steps:

• Prepare artichokes or buy canned bottoms. To prepare remove stem and then break the leaves of the base. Artichoke should have a conical shape when done. Cut off the core of the artichoke above the base. Base should be trimmed with vegetable peeler until all of the fibrous material is removed. Place the core and bottom in lemon water. The choke will be removed after cooking.
• Arrange artichoke pieces in one layer in saucepan with little oil, water, lemon juice and a dash of salt. Cook for 20-25 minutes covered. Once tender remove bottoms with spoon and pour cooking liquid over the bottoms.
• Spinach Sauté:.
• Cook in skillet with dash of salt 3-4 minutes until wilted. Drain. Using a spoon, press spinach to extract water. Chop the spinach and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Heat butter in skillet until dark brown then add spinach. Sauté just until heated. Reheat the artichoke bottoms in their liquid and drain. Arrange them in a gratin dish and spoon spinach into each one. Press the Swiss cheese on top of spinach.
• Gratin Sauce:.
• Melt the butter in a heavy saucepan and add flour. Mix with whisk and cook on medium heat for 10 seconds. Add the milk all at once and mix with whisk. Add the salt, pepper, and nutmeg. Stir until sauce boils. Reduce heat and boil for 30 seconds. Add cream and remove from heat.
• Preheat the broiler. Coat the artichokes with sauce and sprinkle with parmesan cheese. Heat under broiler for 3-4 minutes or until browned.

ARTICHOKE BOTTOMS STUFFED WITH SPINACH AND WALNUT PUREE

Steps:

• Heat oil in a skillet over low heat.
• saute the onion until lightly browned.
• add the spinach and cook, stirring constantly until wilted.
• place the spinach, walnuts, and cream in a food processor and puree.
• season with salt and pepper.
• preheat oven to 350.
• fill artichoke bottoms with spinach cream.
• place in glass baking dish large enough to hold all bottoms in one layer.
• drizzle with teh broth or beer, cover with alumnium foil, and bake for 25 minutes, basting occasionally.
• just before serving, douse with te hremaining liquid from the bottom of t hepan.

SPINACH AND ARTICHOKE STUFFED SHELLS

Steps:

• Cook the pasta to al dente according to the package directions. Drain and set aside. Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F.
• Mix together the spinach, artichokes, ricotta, 4 ounces cream cheese, 1/3 cup Parmesan, 1 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of black pepper in a medium bowl. Whisk together the half-and-half, mozzarella, remaining 4 ounces cream cheese, remaining 1/3 cup Parmesan and 1 teaspoon salt in a medium microwave-safe bowl until smooth and combined. Heat in the microwave in 30-second increments, stirring between each, until warm and smooth, about 2 minutes.
• Spread 1/2 cup cheese sauce on the bottom of a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Stuff a heaping tablespoon of the spinach mixture into each shell and arrange them in the baking dish seam-side up. Pour the remaining cheese sauce over the shells, cover with foil and bake until the cheese is melted and bubbling, 13 to 15 minutes.
• Meanwhile, mix the olive oil, breadcrumbs and parsley, if using, in a small bowl until well combined. Remove the foil from the baking dish and sprinkle the mixture over the shells. Bake until the breadcrumbs are golden brown and the cheese is bubbly, about 10 minutes.

SPINACH DIP STUFFED ARTICHOKES

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F. Heat the olive oil in a large, wide pot over medium heat. Add half of the garlic and half of the red pepper flakes and cook, stirring, until fragrant, about 1 minute. Add the spinach, in batches if necessary, and cook, tossing, until wilted. Transfer to a cutting board and chop. Transfer to a bowl and cool slightly. Add the panko, mozzarella, Parmesan, 1 teaspoon salt and pepper to taste and toss to combine.
• Cut the stems off of the artichokes so that you have a flat base, reserving the stems. Cut the top 1 1/2 inches off the artichokes with a serrated knife and rub the surface with half of the lemon. Use kitchen shears to cut any remaining pointy tips from the artichoke leaves. Starting from the base, gently pull a leaf away from the center and stuff in a little bit of the spinach filling. Continue to stuff the leaves, working inward to the center of the artichoke, until it is no longer possible to pull the leaves away. Repeat with the remaining artichokes.
• Arrange the artichokes in a baking dish and fill the dish with about 1 inch of warm water. Cover tightly with aluminum foil and bake until the leaves pull out easily and the flesh is tender, 1 hour to 1 hour 20 minutes. Let stand for 10 minutes.
• Meanwhile, take the reserved artichoke stems and trim away all of the outer woody green parts, leaving just the pale green cores. Chop the cores. Melt the butter in a small saucepan over low heat. Add the remaining garlic, red pepper flakes and the stems. Cook, stirring occasionally, until the stems are crisp-tender and the butter is fragrant with garlic, about 6 minutes. Squeeze in the juice from the remaining lemon half and stir in the parsley; season with salt.
• Serve the warm artichokes drizzled with the garlic-lemon butter; serve any remaining garlic-lemon butter on the side for dipping.

STUFFED ARTICHOKE BOTTOMS

Steps:

• Cut a thin slice from bottoms of artichokes to level if necessary. Place in a greased 15x10x1-in. baking pan., In a large bowl, combine the cream cheese, garlic, chives and oregano. Spoon into artichokes; sprinkle with Parmesan cheese. Bake at 350° for 22-26 minutes or until cheese is golden brown.