Artichokes with Lemon Yogurt Sauce
Artichokes are super fun to eat and actually easier to prepare than you'd think! Serve them with this tasty Lemon Yogurt Sauce for dipping and you've got yourself a healthy snack, appetizer or side dish!
Servings: 4
Calories: 100kcal
Ingredients
- 4 large artichokes
- 1/2 cup yogurt (I like to use Greek Yogurt)
- juice of 1 lemon
- 1 tablespoon dijon mustard
- 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
Instructions
- Place 2 inches of water in a steamer pot and bring to a boil.
- Cut top 1/4 and bottom stem off of large artichokes with a serrated knife. If leaves have prickly or barbed ends, trim them off with scissors. If you are using baby artichokes, remove some of the tough outer leaves, until you hit the pale green leaves (about 10-20 leaves). Trim off top and bottom stem of baby artichokes.
- Place artichokes in the steamer pot stem end down, cover and cook over medium-high heat for 30 minutes (if cooking baby artichokes cook half the amount of time) or until the leaves peel off the artichoke easily and the base of the artichoke is tender when pierced with a knife.
- In a separate bowl, combine the remaining ingredients and whisk.
- Serve the artichokes with the yogurt dip.
Notes
- How to Eat an Artichoke: When eating the large artichokes, you want to pull off the leaves and eat the “meat” off of the bottom half of each leaf, discarding the leaves. Once you’ve eaten all of the leaves, you will have the artichoke heart remaining. With a knife or spoon, scrape out and discard the inedible fuzzy part (called the “choke”) covering the artichoke heart. The remaining bottom of the artichoke is the heart. Cut into pieces and dip into sauce to eat.
- How to Pick the Best Artichokes: Look for ones that feel heavy and have bright green, tightly closed leaves.
- Get the Kids Involved: One of the best ways to encourage kids to try new foods is to involve them in the cooking process. My kids learned to love artichokes because they helped me prep them and loved peeling the outer leaves. Giving kids a role in the kitchen makes them more excited to eat the finished dish!
- Test for doneness: Artichokes are ready when a knife easily pierces the base and the leaves pull off without resistance.
- Sauce Storage: The sauce can be kept in an airtight container in the refrigerator for 3-5 days. Use it to dip other veggies or even fish in!
Nutrition
Calories: 100kcal | Carbohydrates: 21g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 1g | Sodium: 650mg | Fiber: 9g | Sugar: 3g