Cardi Gratinati alla Romana

The cardoon or artichoke thistle is a interesting plant.  If celery and artichokes could have a baby, they might be a lot like the cardoon.  The taste is dominated by the artichoke with a little celery-like texture thrown in for good measure.  I love it and my husband loves it.  We snatch it up every time we find it in the market.

But, before you do anything… you MUST remove the thorny spines.  First, run a paring knife down each stalk.  Most of the thorns are easily visible.  But, some can be quite small.  So, it’s best to simply remove the outermost edges of each stalk.  Work quickly.  After removing the spines, carefully remove all of the fibrous threads (as you would from the outer stalks of celery).  The cut areas discolor rapidly.  As soon as you finish with each stalk, place them in a large bowl of water with the juice of 2 lemons.  I like to squeeze in every drop of lemon juice that I can.  Then, I toss in the rinds.

This time, even working quickly, I  got more discoloration than I would like to see.  Clean your cardoons immediately before use.  And, keep your prepared cardoon pieces in water until you’re ready to use them.  Depending on their size, you’ll need one or two bunches for this recipe.

Cardi Gratinati alla Romana
adapted slightly from Mario Batali’s recipe
(makes 1 large casserole dish)

4-5 lbs cardoons
2 lemons, halved
10-12 cups water

1/2 cup freshly grated pecorino fresco
2 cups besciamela sauce (or bechamel sauce)
1/4 – 1/2 teaspoon black pepper
salt, to taste

Top:

1/2 cup pecorino fresco, finely grated or processed fine
1/2 cup bread crumbs, processed fine

Bring cardoons to a boil in a large stock pot of 10-12 cups of acidulated water.  Simmer long enough to wilt (approximately 10-20 minutes) and drain well.  Add cardoons back to the stock pot and combine them with 2 cups besciamela sauce, 1/4 teaspoon black pepper, and pecorino.   Add salt to taste.  Stir well to combine all of the ingredients.

Pour into a large casserole dish and top with the mixture of bread crumbs and pecorino.  Bake at 375 degrees F for 45-55 minutes …or until cardoons are tender.

Besciamela Sauce

3 Tablespoons flour
4 Tablespoons butter
2 cups milk
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon white pepper, freshly ground

In a small sauce pan, melt the butter.  Add flour and allow to bubble for 2-3 minutes.  Add salt, nutmeg and ground black pepper.  Slowly drizzle in milk.  Stir vigorously to prevent lumps from forming.  Stir vigorously until the sauce is smooth and creamy.  Bring to a simmer and allow sauce to thicken.

(If mixture is too thick for your taste add another 1/2 cup of milk.)

Buon Appetito!

(P.S. …Sometimes after wilting and straining the cardoons, I’ll make a little addition.  In the stockpot, add one diced onion.  Saute until light golden.  Then, add two finely diced potatoes and saute long enough to give the potatoes some color.  Then, I’ll add the cardoons and proceed as above.)