This is a delicious, perfumed dish that can function as both a side dish or main course, especially at the beginning of spring, when this vegetable (first cultivated in Ancient Egypt) is in season.
At the French court
From the northern coasts of Africa, artichokes traveled to Sicily, then to Tuscany. They eventually reached France thanks to the Florentine Maria de’ Medici, who married King Henry II of France in 1500 and brought this plant with her.
In Italy, it was forgotten until the 19th century, when it returned and was particularly cultivated in the fields surrounding Rome, where it was an easy, popular sell
Upside down
The recipe of Roman artichokes starts by eliminating the thickest, external leaves and cutting the tip, leaving only a short bit of the stalk. The artichokes are then stuffed with a mixture of parsley, mint, garlic, and oil and then cooked with their ‘heads’ down, one next to the other, till the leaves open up.
Zeus’ revenge
According to Greek mythology, Zeus had tried to seduce the beautiful nymph Cynara, but she had resisted. This prompted Zeus to turn her into an unapproachable plant, with thorny leaves and fruit; the artichoke. Cynara in fact is the scientific name of the plant, and Cynar is the name of a popular Italian digestive liquor produced since 1952 made from artichokes (because of their distinct medicinal properties). An interesting note; this is the most represented vegetable in renaissance paintings, because of its vivid colors and interesting round shape.
The right wine
This is not an easy pairing, because artichokes are high in tannins and richly-flavored minerals. The best choice is the sparkling white wine Spumante Metodo Classico from Trentino, or from the Alta Langa area of Piedmont.
