The artichoke salad it is a delicate side dish or appetizer, simple and quick to prepare, which it does not require cooking and that makes us fully savor the taste of these vegetables so rich in minerals. They are seasoned with a citronette and can be garnished with parmesan flakes.

How artichokes are cleaned

To clean artichokes first get plastic gloves, otherwise you will have sad brownish colored hands. Then take a basin and fill it with water and lemon juice. Then cut the stem of the artichoke leaving a couple of centimeters only, scrape it a little with a small knife and then, always with the help of a small knife, remove the outer, harder and leatherier leaves and cut off the tip. Continue until the leaves become one more pale color and you will feel them more delicate and soft to the touch. Then cut the artichoke in half and remove the inner hair, making a recess with the knife in the central part of the vegetable. At this point put your two artichoke halves in the acidulated water for prevent them from oxidizing and that they become dark. Continue until you have finished all the vegetables.

An alternative citronette

The classic citronette is prepared by squeezing a lemon, filtering its juice and emulsifying it with oil, salt and pepper. If you want to experience a less strong and less sour taste of lemon, you can replace it with an orange. So get a ripe fruit from juice, filter the juice and follow the instructions as if it were a lemon. To give an extra touch, you can also add the grated orange peel. In this case it is imperative that your oranges come from biological agriculture, to be sure that they have not undergone chemical treatments.

And now let's see how the artichoke salad is prepared

Ingredients

1 kg Sardinian artichokes, 50 g parmesan, 1 lemon.

For the citronette
30 ml lemon juice, 60 ml extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper.

Method

Clean the artichokes as indicated, put them in the acidified water and when they are all cleaned, slice them thinly and place them on a serving plate. Cut the Parmesan into flakes and keep it aside. In a bowl emulsify the lemon juice with the oil, salt and pepper. Mix well with a whisk to obtain a homogeneous sauce that you will pour on the artichokes. Also add half the parmesan flakes and mix. Now place the salad in the individual dishes with the help of a pastry cutter, complete with the remaining parmesan flakes and finish each dish with a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil.