Artichoke Barigoule

Ingredients

• 4 large globe artichokes (cleaned)
• 1 carrot ( sliced)
• 1 onion ( sliced)
• 1 cup / 250ml dry white wine
• 1 litre veal or chicken stock

Stuffing

• 1 bunch fresh thyme
• 1 bunch fresh basil
• 1 small bunch parsley
• 2 Tbsp olive oil
• 1 onion chopped
• 225 gm ground pork
• 2 garlic cloves , chopped
• 1 cup bread crumbs
• 4 button mushrooms trimmed and chopped
• 60gm cured ham chopped
• Half  cup salted black olives pitted and chopped
• salt and pepper

Method

Heat oven to 180˚C

Bring a large pan of salted water to a boil.

Simmer cleaned artichokes until partly cooked - 25-30 minutes. Drain and let cool.

Meanwhile make the stuffing.

Heat oil in frying pan over a medium heat. Add the onion and saute until translucent, 3 - 5 minutes. Stir in the pork and garlic, cutting the pork with a spoon to crumble it. Cook until browned, 5 - 7 minutes.

Take from the heat, stir in the breadcrumbs, mushrooms, ham and olives and leave to cool.

Add the chopped herbs with some pepper and mix thoroughly. Fill the hollow of each artichoke with the stuffing. Reshape the artichokes  and tie string around them to hold the leaves in place.

Spread the carrot and onion in the casserole, set aside the artichokes upright on top and add the wine. Set the pan over a medium heat, bring to the boil and simmer for 5 minutes. Pour over enough broth to reach halfway up the sides of the artichokes. Bring to a boil, cover the artichokes with parchment paper, and add the lid. Braise in the oven until very tender - aprox ½ hour. Baste with the  juices from time to time, and add more broth if necessary to keep the artichokes very moist.

Remove the artichokes and keep somewhere warm. Strain the broth into a saucepan, bring to the boil and taste. If it seems thin, boil to reduce and concentrate it and adjust seasoning.

Place artichokes in soup bowls, discard the strings and pour the hot broth over them. Finish with chopped parsley and basil.