Stuffed artichokes with sausage

Artichokes stuffed with sausage are a second course, simple to prepare, delicious and substantial. If like me you love artichokes here is the perfect dish for you: "artichokes stuffed with sausage".

The protagonists of this simple recipe are the artichokes that are characterized by their rounder shape and non-thorny leaves. The unmistakable sweet but slightly bitter taste of these artichokes with a pulpy and compact consistency will be embellished by the flavor of the sausage, the creaminess of the cheese and the scent of aromatic herbs. The artichokes will turn into irresistible caskets with a tasty and succulent heart. They will tempt everyone and I am sure they will disappear in a flash.

 

Artichokes stuffed with sausage are an inviting and tasty second course, also excellent as a hearty appetizer, or side dish. For a dinner with family or friends, they are prepared with simple ingredients. The artichokes stuffed with sausage and breadcrumbs are originally from Verona. They are a perfect single dish, hearty and nutritious, even if it needs – however – a little time and patience for its preparation. The artichokes, in fact, must first be cleaned, eliminating the parts that are not needed, then immersed in an acidulated solution of water and lemon, so that they do not blacken, filled with a mixture of garlic, artichoke stems, sausage, butter, Parmesan cheese and eggs, having first been cooked upside down in a pot with dry white wine and chopped parsley and later put in the oven.

Ingredients

4 Artichokes

1 Lemon

250 g sausage

50 g Spreadable fresh cheese

50 g Parmigiano Reggiano (grated)

Salt to taste

Pepper to taste

Mint to taste

Parsley to taste

Extra virgin olive oil to taste

4 tablespoons White dry wine

1 clove Garlic

Preparation

Let's start the preparation of artichokes stuffed with sausage from the cleaning of artichokes: I will give you some advice to keep their color unchanged. We prepare 4 sheets of cling film. Let's get some latex gloves and rub your hands well with lemon juice. In this way, already eliminating the first leathery leaves, the artichoke will not oxidize and will not change color. Remove all the thicker and leathery outer leaves, until you get to the tender part of the artichoke, always massaging the artichoke with a little lemon juice. We do not eliminate the final part nor the filamentous part of the stem. This operation will be done only at the end before stuffing them! We cut the tip of the artichoke so as to obtain tender heart of artichoke. We always massage with a few drops of lemon juice. Gently open the leaves of the artichoke and, with a swipe, remove the thorniest and leathery central part and also the internal beard. After cleaning the artichoke flower, massage it with more lemon juice and wrap it tightly in plastic wrap. It will serve not to make them oxidize! We never soak artichokes in acidulated water. It would soak them with water, altering their color, texture and flavor! We proceed in this way for all the remaining artichokes, always wrapping them tightly in film. After this first phase of cleaning, let's take care ofthe filling. With the help of a knife we chop very finely abundant mint and a little parsley. Let's take care of the sausage: using a knife we make an incision, remove the casing and take the meat with our hands. Lightly crush the sausage so as to shell it and reduce it into small pieces. Transfer it to a bowl, add the chopped herbs and work it with a fork. Add the cream cheese and grated Parmesan. Let's mix everything well. At this point we proceed with the second phase of cleaning: we remove the film from the artichoke. We cut the leathery end of the stem and with a swivel remove the filamentous part, always of the stem. Gently open the leaves of the artichoke, sprinkle it with a pinch of salt inside. We remove a part of the stem (keeping on the artichoke about 3-4 cm) and with a knife cut it into small pieces. Let's add it to the mixture with the sausage. We proceed in this way with all the artichokes. We fill the artichokes with the mixture with the sausage, making it adhere and penetrate well with your hands. We arrange the artichokes upside down in a baking tray with the bottom sprinkled with a drop of oil. We also add a clove of garlic. Polish them with a little oil and flavor them with a pinch of salt and ground pepper. Cover the pan with aluminum foil and cook the artichokes stuffed with sausage in a preheated static oven at 180 ° C for about 10 minutes. After this time, bake them and add an emulsion made with a little white wine (about 4 tablespoons), 20 ml of hot water and 15 ml of oil. We continue cooking always with the foil for another 5-6 minutes. Then remove the foil and spread the artichokes in the pan. We finish cooking in a ventilated oven for another 8-10 minutes at 200 °C in order to dry the sauce a little and obtain a slight gratin on the part from the filling. Serve them very hot glazing them with the sauce that will be formed during cooking. Artichokes stuffed with sausage will be the perfect second dish for any occasion! You will see what goodness they are!

Tip

 If you have a little mixture left over with sausage you can form delicious meatballs and then pass them in breadcrumbs.