Artichokes and Meyer lemons are a great pairing.  And I love them both roasted.  I first had a similar dish at Cindy’s Backstreet Kitchen in St. Helena, California.  I went home, picked some Meyer lemons from my tree and started experimenting.  I have been making this dish ever since!

Ingredients
4 medium to large artichokes
4 cups water
1/2 bottle white wine (Sauvignon blanc or chardonnay will work fine)
3 Meyer lemons, cut in half
1 bay leaf
1 teaspoon whole mixed peppercorns
1 teaspoon sea salt
Extra-virgin olive oil
Fleur de sel

You will also need:
1 large pot
1 large baking dish
1 chef’s knife
1 paring knife
kitchen scissors
Large slotted spoon

Instructions
Prepare the artichoke by trimming the stem down to about an inch and removing the small outer leaves at the bottom.  Cut the tops of the leaves off so that there are no prickly thorns to surprise anyone.

Cut the artichoke into quarters and remove the choke (the fibrous area in the center) from the each quarter.

Meanwhile, fill a large pot with the water, the wine, two of the Meyer lemon halves, the bay leaf, the peppercorns and 1 teaspoon of sea salt.  Bring to a boil.  Add the artichoke quarters and bring back to a boil.

Reduce the heat to medium and cook for about 10 minutes until the artichokes are just starting to get tender throughout.  Remove from the heat.

Preheat the oven to 425 degrees Fahrenheit.

Remove the artichokes from the liquid with a slotted spoon and put them into a large baking dish.  Drizzle the artichokes with olive oil, rubbing each one to make sure that it is coated with the oil.   Rub the remaining 4 lemon halves with olive oil and place them, cut side up, in the baking dish, as well.

Roast at 425 degrees Fahrenheit for about 30 minutes,or until the artichokes and the lemon halves are browned.    Remove from the heat.  Sprinkle with fleur de sel (sea salt).  Serve the artichokes along with the roasted lemons.  Squeeze the roasted lemon juice over the artichokes for a real treat.

You can, of course, also serve this dish with your favorite aioli, mayonnaise or yogurt dipping sauce.

Serves 4.

Meyer lemons are abundant year-round on my trees in Sausalito.  I try not to waste a single lemon.  I give a lot of them away as gifts to friends and neighbors, and I look for new ways in which to preserve these treasures.

I started making Meyer lemon marmalade several years back, and it has now become very popular with my friends.  In order to keep the rinds from becoming too chewy, it is important to add an equal amount of water to the mix.  In fact, I use a 1:1:1 ratio – chopped Meyer lemons:water:sugar.

This marmalade is especially good with freshly-made scones.

It also goes well with goat cheese.  I simply spread some crusty bread with fresh goat cheese and then spread Meyer lemon marmalade over the top.  It is always a hit!

Ingredients
8 cups Meyer lemons, thinly chopped (approx. 16 lemons)
8 cups water
8 cups sugar

You will also need:
Chef’s knife
Large pot, such as a Dutch oven
Large spoon
Skimmer
Candy thermometer
Large open pan for sterilizing jars
6-7clean jars with new lids and rings
Canner
Jar tongs
Kitchen towel
Canning funnel, clean and sterilized
Paper towels
Regular tongs

Instructions

Place the chopped Meyer lemons, water and sugar into a large pot.  Bring to a boil over medium-high heat.  Reduce the heat and cook at a medium boil, stirring frequently to keep from sticking.  Skim any foam from the top. Continue to cook until the marmalade reaches 220^oF or until thickened.

Meanwhile, put about an inch of water in the bottom of a large open pan.  Add the clean jars, open top down.  Bring to a slow simmer and let the jars cook for at least 10 minutes.  Keep hot.

Put enough water into the canner to completely cover your jars by about an inch.  Put it on a back burner and bring to a boil.

When the marmalade is ready, remove a jar from the hot skillet using the jar tongs and place the jar upright onto a kitchen towel.  Place a funnel into the jar.  Ladle the hot marmalade into the jar until it is almost full.  Leave about ¼” of space at the top.  Wipe the rim of the jar with a paper towel (a damp paper towel works best).

Drop one of the lids into the skillet with the hot jars and leave it there for about 30 seconds.

Remove the lid from the water with tongs and place it on top of the jar filled with marmalade.  Place a ring on the jar and tighten it.

Repeat until all of the marmalade has been ladled into the jars.  Gently place each jar into the canner (the water should be hot by now).

Cover the canner and bring the water to a boil.  Reduce the heat slightly and boil the jars for at least 5 minutes.  I typically do it for 7 minutes.

Turn off the heat underneath the canner.  Remove the jars from the water, dry them off and place them on the countertop to cool.  You should hear the lids pop within a few minutes.  If the jar is sealed, the lid dips slightly in the middle.  If the lid sticks up in the middle, then the jar has not sealed and the marmalade should be refrigerated and consumed within a week.

Be careful with the marmalade until it completely cools – don’t shake it around much.

Makes about 6 (8 oz.) jars of sunny marmalade.

Note: Several photos courtesy of McArdle Images.

There is just something about the flavor of cardamom that makes a super pairing with espresso.  This ice cream is very simple to make.  It is made in the same style in which we made ice cream when I was growing up on my grandmother’s farm in rural Georgia – with fresh cream, milk, sugar and natural ingredients, but no eggs.  It is rich and creamy and intensely flavored!  My obsession with the cardamom ice cream affogato came to me a few months back while at Oxbow Market in Napa.   I spotted cardamom ice cream at the Three Twins Ice Cream shop.  Since it is right across from Ritual Coffee, I asked the Ritual folks to put a shot of espresso in the bowl.   I liked it so much that I started experimenting with making cardamom ice cream at home.
 

Ingredients
1 cup cream
1 vanilla bean
1/2 teaspoon crushed cardamom seeds (I buy whole seeds and crush them myself using a pestle and mortar.)
4 green cardamom pods (optional)
1/2 cup sugar
1 cup whole milk

Espresso shots for serving

You will also need:
Small saucepan
Paring knife
Large spoon
Ice cream maker (I use a Cuisinart ice cream with a compressor in it).
Pint-sized freezer-safe container with tight-fitting lid
Espresso maker
Ice cream scoop
Glasses or dishes for serving affogato

Instructions
Pour the cream into a saucepan and place over medium heat.  Split the vanilla bean lengthwise and scrape the seeds into the cream.  Drop the vanilla bean into the cream, as well. 

Add the crushed cardamom seeds, the cardamom pods and the sugar. Mix well.  When the mixture starts getting bubbles on the sides (just before a full boil), turn off the heat, cover the mixture and let it sit for about 20 minutes for the flavors to infuse.  

Remove the vanilla bean halves and the green cardamom pods.  Add the milk.  Cover and place into the refrigerator to cool for at least an hour.  

Remove the mixture from the refrigerator and pour into the container of your ice cream maker.  Freeze the mixture according to the instructions for your machine. 

Remove the ice cream from the machine, place into a freezer-safe container with a tigh-fitting lid and place into the freezer.  The ice cream will need to freeze to a firm consistency.  I find that overnight is best.
   

Makes 1 pint of ice cream.

To make the affogato, remove the ice cream from the freezer.  Using an ice cream scoop, scoop out a serving of ice cream and place it into a dish.  Pour a shot of hot espresso over the ice cream.  Serve immediately.