Rachael's Daytime Talk Show
Braised Artichokes and Olives

Braised Artichokes and Olives

Ingredients

  • 2 lemons, halved
  • 22 to 24 (2 pounds) baby artichokes, preferably with some stem attached
  • 1/4 cup EVOO – Extra Virgin Olive Oil
  • 1 onion, quartered and very thinly sliced
  • 6 garlic cloves, very thinly sliced
  • 6 fresh bay leaves
  • Salt and pepper
  • 1 cup dry white wine
  • 1 cup green Sicilian olives
  • 1 cup basil leaves, loosely packed, thinly sliced

Yields: 6-8 servings

Preparation

Squeeze the juice of 3 lemon halves into a bowl and fill the bowl with water.

Trim off a few of the dark outer leaves from the artichokes then trim the stems up but leave them intact. Cut of about 1/2 inch off the top of the artichoke. Thinly slice about 1/8 inch thick, soaking them in lemon water as you work to prevent them from turning brown.

Heat EVOO in large skillet with a tight-fitting lid over medium to medium-high heat. Add onions and garlic, and sauté 5 minutes. Drain and dry the artichokes and add them to pan with bay leaves. Raise the heat a bit and season with salt and pepper. Lightly brown the artichokes then stir in wine and olives, and cover pan. Reduce heat to simmer and cook 10 minutes more until tender.

Uncover and reduce liquid a final minute or 2, douse with juice of remaining lemon half and transfer to a serving platter. Garnish with basil.