Montillana-style artichokes

We love artichokes and this typical recipe from Córdoba gastronomy has captivated us. The Artichokes a la Montillana receive this name from the wine with which they are made with the Montilla-Morilas Designation of Origin. If you have not tried them, you are already taking too long because they are delicious.

Ingredients:

• 1kg fresh artichokes
• 3 garlic cloves
• 1 onion
• 100g good serrano ham
• 200ml of Montilla-Moriles white wine
• 50g raw pine nuts
• 200ml of water
• Laurel
• Salt
• Pepper
• 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs
• A few strands of saffron

Preparation:

1. We clean the artichokes, remove the green leaves and leave only the central part.
2. We rub with a lemon so that they do not oxidize and we put them to boil in our Chef 20cm pot with plenty of water for 15-20 minutes, we check by pricking with a spike that they are tender.
3. Once the artichokes are cooked, we drain them. We reserve the water.
4. Chop the garlic and onions, put the extra virgin olive oil in the Chef pan and fry until everything is soft.
5. Add the ham, bay leaf, saffron and mix with the sauce for one minute.
6. We add the breadcrumbs that will help us thicken our sauce, sauté for a few seconds.
7. In a small saucepan or frying pan, brown the pine nuts for a few minutes.
8. Add the artichokes and pine nuts to the sauté pan, season with salt and pepper and add a little water from cooking the artichokes. We don't need to cover the artichokes, just have enough to make our sauce.
9. Let it cook over medium-low heat for about 15 minutes, or until the sauce has the desired consistency.
10. Once ready we serve. This dish is much better if we taste it the next day, this way the flavors will be more established and much richer.

Photographs and recipe by Raquel .