Staunton vindicator. [volume] (Staunton, Va.) 1860-1896, 1894-06-29
AN ARTICHOKE IDYL.

| AN ARTICHOKE IDYL.
AN UNFAMILIAR VEGETABLE OVER
WHICH EPlCURES RAVE.
The "Jerusalem" Kind Is Not the True Ar
ticIe and Is Used to Fatten Catt1e-Mouth
| Watering Recipes Used by French and
Creole Chefs.
just Sc years after Columbus discov-
cred America gastronomic genius in
the south Of France discovered the artl-
choke as delicious dish of a saladic
character. It was indeed a rather re-
markable find or guess for the plant
bears a strong resemblance to the this
tie, and up to that date any man who
ate it ran the risk of being classed with
that animal which enjoys thistles and
knows how to bray.
The portion of the articholze generally
eaten is the underside Of the head be-
fore the flower unfolds itself, or what in
kitchen parlance is called the artichoke
bottom. But the lower part of the leaves
that join this base and contain about q
fifth Of a teaspoonful Of edible and cas-
lily digestible substance is equally priced
by the wise. A common way of eating
these bottoms after the head is removed
from the plant and the body has been
well boiled, like cabbage, is to pull
off the leaves and then cat the remain
lore coli 1,,,t+
But the French ard the creoles of
New Orleans, where the artichole is
regarded with a kind Of sentimental Or
affectionate appetite, frequently gather
the heads when the bottom is no larger
than silver dollar and eat the lower
end of the leaves raw, dipping them
daintily in a sauce made Of Oil, red pep
per and red wine vinegar or occasional
ly in a queer sauce Of butter and spice.
Another way the French and their
kindred here have of embalming the
artichoke in the memory of particular
stomachs is to bake the dried heads, for
which purpose the second crop or rowen
of articholzes is preferred, in meat pie
with mushrooms. This dish has not yet
made its appearance in New York res
taurants.
Neither has the artichoke patty, an
invention of the famous Partisan chef,
Trisconi, now living in rich retirement
on his estate near New Orleans, and
cooking only occasionally on state occa-
sions or for gourmets whose praise de-
lights his poet nature. At dinner given
in 1884 by the New Orleans exposition
management to some editorial visitors,
Trisconi presented some of these famous
patties, and one editor, whose name is
household word, remarked that such
dish could teach man the art to choke
himself to death without grieving, to
which another replied that the art to
joke in that way was an editorial func-
ton more honored in the breach than in
the observance, and in an awesone hush
the guests went on solacing their souls
with patties.
The composition of these culinary
wonders is profound secret, which will
probably die with its Columbus, but
there are many other ways-about 20 i'll
all-of cooking the artichoke, and some
of these methods carry elaboration to
excess. Let brief description of one
way suffice.
You take about six or eight plants of
medium size, remove the coarsest leaves,
trim them off straight Oh top, cut out
the cores or cholzes, wash and drain care
fully. Then fry the tips in oil. and for
dressing chop up very fine half pound
Of fresh pork fat, with the same amount
of butter Add 3 minced shallots, a large
spoonful of chopped parsley, salt, pep
per, nutmeg, a pound Of minced mush-
rooms and a gill of madeira. After thor
ough mixing divide into as many por
lions as you have artichoke shells and
fill the hollow plants.
Cover these with bands of thick pork
and tie around with strong string. Put
these imprisoned artichokes now into a
large saucepan, with more pork, chopped
carrots, onions, parsley, etc. Moisten
with medium stock and white wine and
let boil.
Then skin and cook in an oven for an
hour. Drain off the stock and reduce it
with espagnole to a semiglazed state,
sprinkling in just suspicion of lemon
juice now and then. Free the articokes
from their cord and bands and serve
them, thinly covered, not drowned, in
their accompanying sauce. The name of
the dish is artichants entiere La bari
goule and is equal to dinner of several
courses.
By some persons this dainty vegetable
has been confused with the so called
Jerusalem artichoke, which Is also eat
en-, though chiefly by cattle. The Jeru-
salem artichoke is not true species at
all, but Of kind of wild sunhower
thence its italian name girasole, turn
ing to SUM, with a tuberose root that
resembles potato and tastes very like
delicate turnip when we'll cooked.
This plant is called in some localities
the Canada potato, in others the Vir-
ginian. 1t was introduced into England
in 1920, and its tops, when cured, were
found to be good hay, five Or six tons to
the acre, and it's tuber was fed to cattle.
It is not quite as nourishing as the po-
tato, having per cent moro water, but
it is very fair eating in spite of the pref
udice against it, Once in soil, it is
extremely difficult to extirpate, and it
has curious gift of resisting cold, hav-
ing never been known to be killed OF
spoiled by freezing.
1t was also introduced in southern
Europe at the same time it came to
England, and in some places its dried
fibers are transmitted into cordage and
coarse cloth. It got it's odd name, Jeru-
salem, in English, by corruption of the
italian name, girasole, just as tomatoes
got the name Of love apples i'll French,
pommes d 'amores, by French mistake
of the italian name pomi di Mort, apple
of the Moores, that vegetable having
come to Italy from Morocco traders
It is fact worthy of note that arti-
choke flowers, like rennet, will cprdle
milk. ST. Louis Post Dispatch.
a Hero.