Grilled Artichokes with Garlic and Lemon Aioli

Grilling season is upon us and I couldn’t be more thrilled. And with Memorial day right around the corner, I thought this recipe seemed fitting. (For more Memorial Day recipes ideas, check out a previous post here.) Dinner around our house if often prepared on the grill year-round, but it always seems more enticing when Spring is in the air and meals can be enjoyed outdoors. Whit and I decided to have a dinner date at the house a few weekends ago and although we planned a meat and potatoes kind of meal, we decided to mix things up with grilled artichokes. Let me start by saying — I love artichokes! But to be completely honest, I've only ever purchased the marinated ones in the jar to add to my salads. Neither Whit nor I had ever prepared fresh ones, but we welcomed the cooking challenge and were pleasantly surprised with the results. Not only were they pretty, but they also tasted great. The only disappointment was the small portion of what is actually edible. 

We thought buying the biggest ones in the store was a good idea, but in actuality, it just took a little longer to cook them. So keep cooking time in mind when selecting your produce.

Here's what they look like after a little hot water bath.

Cut them open length wise and discard of the fuzzy insides. Sounds gross, I know.

Generously coat them with the olive oil mixture and then they are ready for the grill!

Cook them just long enough to get grill marks on each side and serve!

Grilled Artichokes + Lemon Garlic Aioli

Ingredients

2 large artichokes

Sea salt and fresh ground pepper

2 lemons

¼ cup of olive oil

4 cloves of minced garlic

Teaspoon of dry white wine

1/3 cup of mayonnaise (can substitute greek yogurt)

Instructions

1.     Preparing the artichokes by pulling off a few of the tough outer leaves. Snip any pointy tops and discard.

2.     Bring a large pot of water to a boil, adding a dash of salt.

3.     Zest one of the lemons and set the zest aside. Cut the lemon in half and squeeze into the pot of boiling water, adding in the halves along with the artichokes. Lower the heat to a simmer and cover with a lid.

4.     In a small bowl, combine lemon zest, olive oil, minced garlic, and salt and pepper. Reserve 1 Tbs.

5.     After about 15 minutes, check for doneness by pulling on one of the artichoke’s outer leaves–if it comes off easily, they are done. Remove artichokes to a cutting board and allow to cool. Once cool enough to handle, cut artichokes in half lengthwise.  Use a spoon to scoop out the fuzzy insides and discard.

6.     Preheat grill to high heat.

7.     Brush the artichoke halves with the olive oil mixture

8.     Place the artichokes on the grill or grill pan and cook until grill marks appear, flipping them to cook on both sides.

9.     While the artichokes are cooking, in a small dish, combine the reserved olive oil mixture with the mayonnaise, juice of the second lemon and white wine to make the aioli. Add more mayo if it's too watery. 

10. Once grill marks are on both sides of the artichokes, remove from the grill, place on a platter and serve with aioli dipping sauce on the side.

·        Only the white tender ends of the leaves are meant to be eaten.