Artichokes and chestnuts
( Carciofi e castagne )

Recipe for artichoke-and-chestnut dish

Preparation and cooking

• - Prepare artichokes.
  Clean artichokes and cut into segments to have eight pieces from each.
  Immediately plunge all segments into the water where you've squeezed the half lemon.
• - Prepare other ingredients.
  Remember to set aside some parsley leaves if you want to garnish your dish as you can see in the photo.
  Squeeze orange and put apart its juice.
  Divide chestnuts into two groups. Cut into 4 to 5 pieces every chestnut of the first group and blend the other ones.
• - The last step: cooking.
  Brown leek in olive oil over very gentle heat for a few minutes, stirring frequently.
  Add artichokes (do not throw the water in which they were plunged) and cook, stirring often, a couple of minutes.
  Pour in orange juice, stir and let simmer, a few minutes.
  Then add half the acidulated water, parsley, blended chestnuts and chestnuts in pieces too.
  Season to taste with salt, stir and continue cooking until all cooking liquid is completely reduced.
  Add more acidulated water only if necessary.

Just before serving

• - Let your dish rest, a couple of minutes.
  Your chestnut-and-artichoke dish is ready to serve!

Note

Tips

• - If you like this recipe idea, you can prepare a delicious soup to eat with a spoon too. In this case add all the acidulated water and cook until the consistency of a soup. It's very tasty served with some crostini (grilled bread slices).

Menu planning

• - Serve this artichoke-and-chestnut recipe as a soup in your daily menu.
  Another idea is to serve it, well reduced, as a side dish to accompany meat or fish without spicy sauces in an important menu.
  Or as a course between appetizers and main dish. If you've prepared spicy appetizers and your main dish has a delicate flavor it is necessary to serve a dish like this one.
• - This vegetarian recipe is also ideal for your children. The presence of chestnuts and orange is a great excuse to make them eat vegetables.
  And then you can also rely on fairy tales. Tell them Fairy Elle, the fairy kid, really likes this recipe and often asks her nanny for it. She wanted chestnut-and-artichoke soup in her Christmas menu at all costs. Link below.

Useful links for this recipe

• - Interested in Fairy Elle stories? follow the link!
• - More details about oranges and artichokes? We made special pages on which you can read about unusual combinations and tips for savory and sweet recipe ideas.

Healthy eating

• - This chestnut-and-artichoke dish can be viewed from two different points of view.
  If you prepare it for your daily menu, serve it as soup. In this case the nutrient supply is OK within the daily balance.
  If you decide to serve it as side dish, you have to be careful because matching it with meat or fish makes calories, fat and sugars rise much. My tip is to prepare it for a special occasion. Considering all courses, total nutrition facts will be an Everest and for once it is better not to know anything!
• - Curious about the nutritive value of artichokes? Consult our page dedicated to artichokes.

What's the right wine for " Artichokes and chestnuts "?

Please, don't match wine with artichokes. This combination often gives bad results.
You can pair this dish with dry sparkling wine if you'r planning an important menu.