Grilled Artichokes with Lemony Garlic Sauce

Yesterday was the perfect Sunday. Zak and I went out to breakfast (paid for by his poker winnings!) at Snooze, a very popular Denver breakfast joint. With popularity comes a 30-45 minute waiting list, buuut, they provide free coffee to keep you from getting too cranky about that. So we sat on the sunny sidewalk (yay alliteration) and played scrabble on Z's phone. We're both pretty bad a scrabble, but it sure did pass the time.Zak got the breakfast burrito, and I got the blueberry pancakes (I just can't seem to get anything else when we go out!). Man, that burrito is the size of a kitten (best analogy I could come up with sorry) so he definitely saved half for lunch later in the day.

After that we played with Irving, my mother's puppy (who we are currently pet sitting), and Watched Jurassic Park II, and let me just say, dinosaurs taking over San Diego? Totally awesome! Finally, we got our garden ready to plant by digging up the weeds and grass clumps and tilling the soil. Then, I made dinner. On the Menu: Grilled Artichokes with Lemony Garlic Sauce.

Please forgive the low quality of this photo, it was really rainy and dark out!

I build the rest of the meal around the artichokes, we ended up having porkchops (also cooked on the grill), salad and mashed potatos. I had been searching for an interesting artichoke idea for a few weeks, because, to me, artichokes symbolize the beginning of the warm season and all the outdoor fun it entails. I came across this recipe on allrecipes.com, and actually followed it to a T because it is simple, and perfect. You will love it, I promise!

Grilled Garlic Artichokes
(with my notes in parentheses)

2 large artichokes
1 lemon, quartered
3/4 cup olive oil 4 cloves garlic, chopped
Salt and Pepper to taste

1. Fill a large bowl with cold water. Squeeze the juice from one lemon wedge into the water. Trim the tops from the artichokes (this was not easy in any way, I had to sharpen my knife twice, but it was worth it in the end), then cut in half lengthwise (remove the purple fuzzy inside with a paring knife), and place halves into the bowl of lemon water to prevent them from turning brown (I thought it was easier to just squeeze the juice over them, because the juice got inbetween the leaves better this way).


2. Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Meanwhile, preheat an outdoor grill for medium-high heat (use charcoal if you can, sooo much better!!).

3. Add artichokes to boiling water, and cook for about 15 minutes. Drain. Squeeze the remaining lemon wedges into a medium bowl. Stir in the olive oil and garlic, and season with salt and pepper (This turns out to be very hollandaise-esque, it's cool how the lemon juice and olive oil emulsify so easily, I had no idea they would!).

4. Brush the artichokes with a coating of the garlic dip, and place them on the preheated grill. Grill the artichokes for 5 to 10 minutes, basting with dip and turning frequently, until the tips are a little charred. Serve immediately with the remaining dip.

These turned out to be sooo delicious, I can't even begin to describe how satisfying the smoky, lemony, garlicy heart was when you finally got to it. This recipe is definitely going into my repertoire for the grill. Speaking of artichokes, did you know that if they are left un-picked, they become these insane looking, but beautiful purple flowers? Pretty cool!