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Cardoon takes work, but worth it

Recipe: Artichoke cousin needs triple blanching to remove bitterness

Sacramento Digs Gardening
BY Debbie Arrington PUBLISHED FEB 3, 2019

Cardoon is an artichoke cousin, but instead of flower buds, eat the stems.
(Photos: Debbie Arrington)

Like its close cousin artichoke, cardoon is a spring oddball. How did people ever figure out how to eat it?

Handsome in the garden, cardoon looks like a gigantic artichoke plant, growing 5 or 6 feet tall and wider across. But instead of edible flower buds, this thistle is valued for the center stem of its wide silvery leaves.

Trimmed of its leaflets, that stem looks like a giant celery stalk, often 18 to 24 inches long. Naturally bitter, that stalk has ridges with tough strings on one side, silvery fuzz on the curved inner side. Both strings and fuzz need to be removed before using.

Making cardoon palatable takes work. But the end result is delicious, like artichoke heart in stalk form. It's an Italian delicacy and worth the time, if you're lucky enough to get some stalks. (Look for them in farmers markets.)

Traditionally, cardoon is marinated (like artichoke hearts) and served in salads or as part of an antipasto plate. Don't skip on the blanching; it helps remove the bitterness and brings out that artichoke flavor.

Marinated cardoon

Makes 1 pint

Ingredients:

4 stalks cardoon
Salt
Juice of 2 lemons
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1/2 teaspoon garlic salt
1/4 teaspoon red pepper flakes

Instructions:

Wash cardoon and remove any leaflets along edges.

With a metal spoon, scrape off silver fuzz from inside each stalk. With a sharp knife, remove strings from ridges on back of each stalk.

Cut stalks crosswise into 1-inch pieces.

Blanche cardoon pieces THREE times
before marinating

Bring a pot of salted water to a boil. Plunge cardoon pieces into boiling water. Blanch for 3 to 4 minutes.

Drain and repeat blanching TWO MORE times. (Yes, cardoon needs triple blanching.)

After the third blanching, cardoon should be fork-tender.

Mix together lemon juice, olive oil and seasoning. Pack cardoon pieces into a jar or other non-reactive covered container. Pour marinade over cardoon pieces. Stir to mix.

Cover tightly and place jar or container in refrigerator. Let cardoon marinate for a week before using.

Add marinated cardoon to salads and antipasto.

Once marinated, it will keep in the refrigerator for at least three months.

Note: Because olive oil solidifies in the refrigerator, remove cardoon at least 30 minutes before serving.

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RECIPE

A recipe for preparing delicious meals from the bounty of the garden.

Keywords:

artichokes gardening Sacramento vegetable recipes recipe marinated cardoon spring garden Italian vegan recipe

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Garden Checklist for week of Nov. 3

November still offers good weather for fall planting:

* If you haven't already, it's time to clean up the remains of summer. Pull faded annuals and vegetables. Prune dead or broken branches from trees.

* Now is the best time to plant most trees and shrubs. This gives them plenty of time for root development before spring growth. They also benefit from fall and winter rains.

* Set out cool-weather annuals such as pansies and snapdragons.

* Lettuce, cabbage and broccoli also can be planted now.

* Plant garlic and onions.

* Keep planting bulbs to spread out your spring bloom. Some possible suggestions: daffodils, crocuses, hyacinths, tulips, anemones and scillas.

* This is also a good time to seed wildflowers and plant such spring bloomers as sweet pea, sweet alyssum and bachelor buttons.

* Rake and compost leaves, but dispose of any diseased plant material. For example, if peach and nectarine trees showed signs of leaf curl this year, clean up under trees and dispose of those leaves instead of composting.

* Save dry stalks and seedpods from poppies and coneflowers for fall bouquets and holiday decorating.

* For holiday blooms indoors, plant paperwhite narcissus bulbs now. Fill a shallow bowl or dish with 2 inches of rocks or pebbles. Place bulbs in the dish with the root end nestled in the rocks. Add water until it just touches the bottom of the bulbs. Place the dish in a sunny window. Add water as needed.

* Give your azaleas, gardenias and camellias a boost with chelated iron.

* For larger blooms, pinch off some camellia buds.

* Prune non-flowering trees and shrubs while dormant.

* To help prevent leaf curl, apply a copper fungicide spray to peach and nectarine trees after they lose their leaves this month. Leaf curl, which shows up in the spring, is caused by a fungus that winters as spores on the limbs and around the tree in fallen leaves. Sprays are most effective now.

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