ArtichokeBisque

Sauté the shallots in the butter and olive oil in a four quart or larger pot. Do not let the shallots brown. Add celery and red pepper and sauté until tender. Add garlic and tomato paste and slowly cook for 3 to 4 minutes until paste turns a deeper redbrown color. Add flour and stir into a paste and cook for 3 minutes. Add chicken broth and stir until smooth. Add artichoke hearts, reserving two pieces for each intended eventual serving for garnish. Cover and slowly simmer until very tender and falling apart, about one hour.

Let the mixture cool a bit and puree until smooth using an immersion blender or in several batches in a blender. Process very finely until no tough outer pieces remain. Add the cream and the parmesan cheese and correct for salt and pepper. Like almost any soup this is much better if made a day ahead and reheated.

Sauté the reserved artichoke hearts in hot olive oil until crisp and brown. Ladle soup into small bowls and garnish with the hearts.


		Artichoke Bisque
My sister-in-law doesn’t just like artichokes – she is a fanatic. So when she leaves the ice and snow of Niagara Falls and comes to visit, one of the must-do trips is to Castroville to load up on all things artichoke. She has artichoke plates and artichoke saucepots and salt and pepper shakers and when she visits she has every manner of the delicious thistle. Fried, steamed, barbequed or sautéed, she loves them all. It’s tough to top a big, fresh artichoke, steamed and served with hollandaise or béarnaise sauce. Artichoke hearts sautéed with shrimp and mushrooms in an alfredo sauce are sheer heaven. A great way to dress a simple broiled chicken is to take two peeled Idaho potatoes, cut in eights, and roast them at 400 degrees with halved crimini mushrooms. Saute a box of frozen artichoke hearts in olive oil, lemon and garlic. Combine the potatoes, mushrooms and artichokes and enjoy. Frozen artichoke hearts may seem a bit pricey at first, but when you see how many artichokes are in each box and all the prep time you have saved, they almost seem a bargain. This recipe for bisque is pure artichoke flavor. It’s smooth, rich, delicious and makes a fine first course. The tomato paste may be a surprise ingredient, but it gives the soup a pretty rosy color, not the Army drab green-grey if is omitted.			Artichoke Bisque 4 TB butter 2 TB olive oil 1 cup minced shallots 1/2 cup diced celery 1/2 cup diced red pepper 2 cloves garlic, crushed and minced 1 tsp thyme 3 TB tomato paste 1/4 cup all-purpose flour 6 cups low-sodium chicken broth 2 8 oz. boxes frozen artichoke hearts 1 cup cream (half and half to heavy whipping) 2/3 cup grated parmesan cheese salt and pepper Sauté the shallots in the butter and olive oil in a four quart or larger pot. Do not let the shallots brown. Add celery and red pepper and sauté until tender. Add garlic and tomato paste and slowly cook for 3 to 4 minutes until paste turns a deeper redbrown color. Add flour and stir into a paste and cook for 3 minutes. Add chicken broth and stir until smooth. Add artichoke hearts, reserving two pieces for each intended eventual serving for garnish. Cover and slowly simmer until very tender and falling apart, about one hour. Let the mixture cool a bit and puree until smooth using an immersion blender or in several batches in a blender. Process very finely until no tough outer pieces remain. Add the cream and the parmesan cheese and correct for salt and pepper. Like almost any soup this is much better if made a day ahead and reheated. Sauté the reserved artichoke hearts in hot olive oil until crisp and brown. Ladle soup into small bowls and garnish with the hearts.
	Courtesy of: Real Estate & Living www.somocorealestate.com