Baby Artichoke & Dinosaur Kale Panzanella

By cottageindustrialist • May 7, 2010 • 0 Comments

⎙

Author Notes: The early weeks of spring are all about artichokes for me. I can't get enough of them! And we have beautiful, locally grown dinosaur kale available here at about the same time. The two come together in this bread salad for a lovely side dish (or a light lunch). Unfortunately, I gobbled it all up before I could take pictures of the finished dish. - cottageindustrialist - cottageindustrialist

Food52 Review: This is a wonderful panzanella. The oil and lemon juice make a dressing that gets soaked up by the bread, but does not weigh it down into a soggy mess. The crunchy kale is nice, but the real treat is the lemony artichokes throughout. - Stephanie - A&M

Serves 4-6

1/4 cup, plus 2T olive oil
1 shallot
2 pounds baby artichokes, trimmed and quartered
1 bunch dinosaur kale, trimmed
6 cups crusty bread, torn into bits
1/2 cup pecorino romano, thinly shaved
1-2 lemons
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 375°. Drizzle the bread with 2 T of olive oil. Toast the bread until golden brown, 7-10 minutes. Set aside.
In a large skillet, over med heat, sautee shallots in 2T olive oil until translucent. Add artichokes and season with salt. Pan roast for 3-4 minutes. Add the juice of half a lemon, and continue cooking, uncovered. Allow all the lemon juice to boil off, and then add another 1-2 T. Continue in this way until artichokes are cooked through but still have some tooth.
Meanwhile, bring a large pot of salted water to boil. Add kale, cooking for 3-4 minutes, or until tender. Drain well and set aside.
Combine bread, artichokes, and kale in a large bowl. Drizzle with remaining olive oil, and add lemon juice, salt, and pepper. Let rest 30 minutes to 2 hours.
Just before serving toss in the pecorino romano.