Carciofi alla giudia (Jewish-style artichokes)

  (4 servings / 40 minutes preparation)

Utensils
Knife
Frying pan
Holed spatula

Ingredients
8 artichokes
extra-virgin olive oil
salt
1 lemon

Preparation
• Remove the dark outer leaves one by one.
• Proceed towards the inner part with a little knife to remove the upper part of the leaves and get a kind of rose.
• Cut the final part of the stalk and put the artichokes in a cold water bowl with some lemon juice for 10 minutes at least. 
• Dry the artichokes and put them upside down to let the excess water leaving out.
• In a quite large frying pan, warm up the extra-virgin oil, plunge the artichokes and let them frying.
• After twenty minutes, take them off with the help of a holed spatula, paying attention not to get burnt, and open the leaves like a "corolla".
• Add salt to them and make them with the stem up in the pan on a high flame and fry for a couple of minutes until they become very crisp.
• Take the artichokes off the fire, drain them and serve hot.

Presentation
Serve it on a course plate placing them as they were big flowers.

Kids partecipation
During the preparation of this recipe, it is better to keep kids away from the pans with hot oil. They may watch and line up the thorn less Roman artichokes already cleaned.

Comments
Typical Jewish plate, symbol of the Latium gastronomic tradition and of the Roman cooking.

Nutritional and cultural curiosities
The recipe dates back to the Medieval Rome when Romans were used to go to the Jewish district to eat the Jewish-style artichokes. They were cooked especially during the Kippur period, a Jewish feast. The artichokes must be round, compact, tender and with the diameter lower than 10 cm: the perfect artichokes is "mammola" or "cimarolo".

Useful tips 
Jewish-style artichokes are very easy to cook; preparation can exalt the aroma and the flavour of the artichoke. During the second frying, it is possible to steam with water or white wine.