Braised Artichokes Stuffed with Sausage and Mushrooms
Serves 6
Ingredients
6 medium artichokes, top half removed and trimmed
4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1/4 cup chopped yellow onion
1/4 pound mushrooms, brushed clean and thinly sliced
1/2 pound lean pork sausage, crumbled
4 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup chopped fresh flat leaf parsley
1/2 teaspoon chopped fresh thyme
10 fresh basil leaves
4 ounces cured ham (Westphalian, Black Forest, Virginia, Smithfield, prosciutto, Serrano), finely diced
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
3 medium yellow onions, thinly sliced
2 small carrots, thinly sliced
6 parsley stems
Large pinch of dry thyme
1 bay leaf
1 1/4 cups dry white wine such as a Sauvignon Blanc
Instructions
Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Add the artichoke band cook them until almost tender, 8 minutes. Cool and reserve.
For the stuffing, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large frying pan over medium heat, add the chopped onions, mushrooms, and sausage and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft, 10 minutes. Place the garlic, chopped parsley, fresh thyme, and basil leaves together on the work surface and add to the onions along with the diced ham. Mix well. Season with salt and pepper. Stuff the centers and between the leaves of the artichokes with the stuffing mixture.
Heat the remaining 2 tablespoons olive oil in a frying pan over medium heat. Add the sliced onions, carrots, salt, pepper, parsley stems, dry thyme and bay leaf and cook 2 minutes. Top with the artichokes, stuffing side up. Pour the wine into the pan and simmer 1 minute. Turn the heat to low, cover the pan, and cook slowly, 45 minutes. Check the pan periodically to make sure they still have liquid. Uncover the artichokes, raise the heat to high, and boil down the broth until you have a syrupy sauce.
To serve, place the onions and carrots on a serving plate with the artichokes on top. Spoon the juices over the top and serve warm.
