Christmas Cooking #2: Cardone

Christmas Cooking #2: Cardone

For many years now, I have warily eyed the boxes of cardone stacked by the front door at Caputo's. If you've never seen this vegetable, it looks a little like prehistoric celery; it's actually in the thistle family (it bears a colorful purple flower), and it's a near relative of the globe artichoke (a primitive vegetable if ever I saw one). Its spiky shafts look somewhat like the finials on Gothic spires; it is not a cuddly plant (thorns snagged me several times as I cleaned them).

"Cardone" is the Italian name, and these vegetables are popular from Tuscany to Sicily; in Southern France and elsewhere, you may see them called "cardoons."

Paging through the Nov/Dec 1996 issue of Saveur (thanks again Giovanna), I found an article about them; the subtitle described them as "bitter and difficult to prepare." I found neither of these descriptors to be accurate.

I ate a few pieces of raw cardone, and detected a certain sweetness but absolutely no bitterness or astringency.

One of the Saveur recipes was so simple that I had to try it. Basically, you clean and trim the cardone, cook in cream and chicken broth for an hour, sprinkle with Gruyere and pepper, then quickly brown under the broiler.

Simple.

The flavor was surprisingly deep (attributable, in part, to the cream and gruyere); the vegetable has a very mild flavor, somewhat reminiscent of artichoke tartness, and a celery-like crispness. Next time, I think I will just boil them and sprinkle with lemon juice.

One caution: 1.5 pounds of cardone trims down to about .5 pound of usable food.

I really dug this veg, and intend to make it again before next Xmas. Just warmed up some leftover cardone and feel suddenly...vigorous.

Hammond