Leek and cardoons veloutè with smoked burrata

Cardoons are a weird and delicious veg typical of the Mediterranean areas. It looks like celery but taste very much like artichokes.

It’s actually pretty easy to grown and does not require much water or fertilizer but it isn’t very common actually, and I think the main reason is because it is a pain to trim and clean J

What I can assure you of, is that once the hard job is done, they are wonderful. Cardoons definitely give their best in soups and stews and pair beautifully with other earth vegs like leeks.

Recipe for about 4 pp

INGREDIENTS:

• 700/800 gr of cardoons

• 2 leeks

• 2 medium potatoes

• 30 gr of unsalted butter

• 2 tbsp of olive oil

• 1 onion

• 1 bay leaf

• 2 smoked burrata (or creamy cheese of your choice, the smokiness helps)

• 8 anchovies fillets

• 1 lemon, zests and juice

• 100 ml of double cream

• White wine vinegar

• Dill or other fresh herbs to garnish

• Salt and pepper to taste

Method

Cut, trim and wash the cardoons as demonstrate in the video. Peel the outer fibres and brush them on the inner part to get rid of the white patina. Careful during this stage as they have spikes here and there.

As soon as peeled, like if they were artichokes, drop them in cold water with lemon juice or the oxidation will discolour them. Now boil the cardoon in salted water with a couple of spoons of vinegar. Cook until soft, then drain and let it cool.

Rinse and chop the leeks. Keep the greener parts separate from the bottom white parts. Boil the green part and cool in ice water as soon as it is soft to retain the bright colour.

In a large pan, brown the chopped onion in olive oil, season with salt and add the bay leaf. When caramelized add the butter and the white leeks and cook for 5 more minutes. Now add the cooked and chopped cardoons and the thinly sliced potatoes. Season with salt and pepper, add water to cover and cook covered with a lid until everything is soft. At this stage, stir in the boiled green leeks and transfer everything into a blender. Add the cream and blitz until you have a smooth(ish) velouté. If necessary, pass it through a sieve but not too fine or you will loose too much texture.

Get ready to plate. Check the velouté for seasoning and plate it while hot in large bowls. I usually add a ‘bed’ of more green veggies like chard but it is optional. Add half smoked burrata each and garnish with lemon zests, chopped anchovies and fresh dill. Drizzle with extra virgin olive oil and enjoy.