Cardoons with Almond Sauce
Cardoons are a vegetables that often turn up at the festive Christmas Eve meals in Spanish homes. Known as cardo in Spanish, the cardoon and its close relative, the artichoke, are thistles. But while it’s the flower bud of the artichoke that is eaten, it is the tall stalks of the cardoon that make up this Christmas dish.
Cardoons are grown in the northern regions of Aragón, La Rioja, and Navarra, so that is where this vegetable is most popular at Christmas. But, last week when I spied the stately stalks at a local grocery store, I couldn’t resist having a go.
Cardoons with Almond Sauce
Ingredients
- 2 lemons
- 1 ½ tablespoons flour
- 2-3 lbs cardoons 1- 1⅓ kg
- 1 ½ salt
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- ½ cup almonds skinned
- 2 cloves garlic
- 1 ½ cups chicken stock
- pimentón (paprika) or saffron to finish
- 12 ½ cups water
Instructions
- Combine the juice of one of the lemons with 4 cups (1 L) of water and set aside. Cut the other lemon in half.
- In a 1/2 cup (120 ml) of water add 1 tablespoon of flour and stir until well mixed, then pour it in a large pot with 8 cups ( 2 L) of water and 1 ½ teaspoons of salt.
- Juice half of the remaining lemon and add it into the pot along with the lemon.
- Clean the cardoons, discard the outer stalks and separate the stalks from the base.
- With a vegetable peeler or a knife, remove the outer stringy layer on the outside of the stalk as well as the thin, inner lining.
- After peeling each stalk, rub their lengths with the remaining half a lemon, cut into 3-inch (7 ½ cm) pieces and place them in the bowl with the lemon juice to keep them from changing color.
- When you've finished peeling them, place the flour and lemon juice mixture on the stove and bring to a boil. When boiling, transfer the cardoons and simmer for about 45-60 minutes until they feel tender when poked with a knife.
- When the cardoons are cooked, remove from the heat and allow to cool in the same liquid they boiled in. If you're not planning to use them right away you can refrigerate them in the cooking liquid and drain them well before use.
- If you're using them right away, proceed to heat a good splash of olive oil over the stove.
- Reserve some almonds (about a dozen should be enough) to garnish the plates with and sauté the rest along with the garlic until golden, then transfer to another dish.
- Place the roasted almonds and garlic in a food processor and blend with a splash of chicken stock until smooth.
- In the oil left over in the pan add 1/2 tablespoon of flour and stir well and lightly cook it over medium-low heat for a couple of minutes.
- Drain the cardoons well and add them to the pan along with the blended mixture and the rest of the stock. Add salt to taste if necessary and remember the stock may be salty enough already.
- Simmer everything with the lid on for around 30 minutes.
- Spoon the cooked cardoons with plenty of almond sauce and sprinkle a little paprika on top or if you want to add a bit of an opulent touch you can switch the paprika for saffron instead.
Enjoy!
Notes
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