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Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic and Basil

Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic and Basil

I grew up eating artichokes and they were always a special treat in our home. My sisters and I would be very excited on the nights my Mom made them. She always made them the same way, boiled and served with a side of mayonnaise…it was the best. I just bought a couple of really big artichokes and decided to try baking them instead of boiling or steaming them. They turned out so good. They were perfectly cooked and full of lemon, garlic, and basil flavor. You don’t need a dipping sauce with these artichokes. My children ate a full half by themselves and were disappointed I didn’t make more. Isn’t it great when your kids eat a vegetable and love it?!?

Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic, and Basil:

Ingredients:

  • 2 large artichokes
  • 1 lemon
  • 2 cloves garlic, minced
  • 2-3 basil leaves, chopped
  • 1-2 tablespoons olive oil
  • Sea salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste
  • 1/2 cup of chicken stock

How to Make Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic, and Basil

Preheat the oven to 350 degrees.

With kitchen scissors, trim all the sharp ends off of each leaf. Wash the artichoke well in cool water. Slice down the center to form two halves. Clean out all the fuzzy hairs and smaller leaves with a spoon then immediately rub all the cut areas with a lemon.

Next combine the olive oil, basil, minced garlic, lemon juice, sea salt, and fresh cracked pepper in a bowl. Mix until it becomes a paste. I rubbed it all over the artichoke halves and inside the leaves.

Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic and Basil

Coat the baking dish with olive oil cooking spray. Place each artichoke half top side down in a baking dish. Pour the chicken stock into the dish and cover with a lid or tin foil.

Bake for 45-50 minutes or until soft and tender. Enjoy!

Baked Artichokes with Lemon, Garlic and Basil

Click here for a printable version of this recipe

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40 Comments

  1. I haven’t made artichokes in a million years, thanks for the reminder. I have always made them like your Mom, so I will have to try the oven next time, sound delicious.

  2. I have serious gaps in my baking and cooking ability- I have never prepped my own artichokes before… I love the contrast with the white plate and the green hue from the artichokes…

    It is for the love of cooking…. how do you feel about boxed cakes- I despise them (now they have so many chemicals and preservatives)…

  3. Artichokes have always been a bit of a mystery to me, with their hard exterior shell thing. But the way you break them down, they don’t sound too difficult to make. I’m going to grab some next time I’m out 🙂

  4. Pam I’ve never had artichokes like this before and they look so appealing. We’ve had the hearst in a salad and the only other way we’ve ever eaten them was stuffed.

  5. I have never tried this but it looks amazing… great post and great blog – I just found you today!! Will be a regular reader for sure.

  6. Got a huge bag of artichokes once from Costco and did not know how to prep it. Had to toss them out at the end. Wish I had known this then…

  7. I grew up eating artichokes…I haven’t had one like this in so long. I may have to try this on my own, and maybe surprise my grandparents (who fed me my childhood artichokes) with them. Looks great!

  8. I’ve always been a little scared of artichokes (who knows why?) but this makes me want to run to the store and try some! Thanks.

  9. What a BRILLIANT idea! I love artichokes, but have only prepared them via boiling. It’s tough to pull off because I need multiple pots to accommodate artichokes for everyone. This way is loads easier, and I bet they taste terrific with that lemon and garlic. I am so impressed with this recipe! YUM!

  10. i’ve never manhandled my own artichoke–i always just get hearts in a can. hearts in a can–that sounds funny. 🙂
    great recipe–i’ll save it for when i decide to tackle the beasts myself. 🙂

  11. I like artichokes, but have always steered clear of them thinking they would be too fiddly to deal with. I’m going to give them a try now.

  12. hello!
    I’m a new reader. these look SO good. I LOVE artichokes, im gonna have to try this recipe. happy eating!

  13. I haven’t tried baking them before, I usually use the pressure cooker to make and easy work of cooking artichokes. Can’t wait to try this method, especially if the oven is already on for something else.

  14. I love artichokes and have never baked them before. Like you, my parents always steamed or boiled them and served with mayo. I love the fresh approach to this recipe. I am definitely giving this a try!

  15. I wasn’t nearly as sophisticated as you when I was a little girl – I do however LOVE them now. Definitely one of my faves.

  16. I bought Artichokes for the first time this weekend. I’m up late and thought I’d bake one based on the way that I vaguely remember them being prepared at a steakhouse in central California a few years ago. I probably should have read your blog first because I didn’t chop the Artichoke in half… the steakhouse did, now that I think about it. I did clip the thorns and chopped off about an inch of the top. I also spread the flower and doused it with olive oil. Afterwards I wrapped it in aluminum foil and it’s been baking now for 30 min at 425 degrees. We’ll see how it turns out. After reading your blog, I wish I would have added garlic, salt and pepper. Next time.

  17. Okay, time to follow up from my post above. My Artichoke didn’t turn out that great. It was nice and mushy when I took it out of the oven, indicating that it’s done, right? I pealed the leaves off one at a time and ate the soft part at the base of the leaves… that’s the way you’re supposed to eat them, right? Not a rhetorical question, I’m seriously asking. Anyway, it seems like I barely got anything worth eating from the thing. I’m not only inexperienced with cooking the things, but eating them too. I probably just tossed a lot of what’s edible.

    1. Dan,

      You did it correctly. Unfortunately, you can only eat the bottom portion of each leaf (the soft portion). You can also eat the heart which is at the base of all of the leaves and attached to the stem. Artichokes don’t fill you up but they are so tasty I don’t mind.

      Here is a link on “how to eat an artichoke”: http://www.wikihow.com/Eat-an-Artichoke

      Cheers,
      Pam

  18. Pam. Thanks for your recipe. I grew up on artichokes and still eat them frequently (I buy them every time they look remotely good). I have always boiled them, knew about baking them, but never really looked for a recipe…until today. Your recipe is delicious. I didn’t cook them for as long but that’s the only thing I changed.
    Thanks!
    Carolann

  19. These artichokes were absolutely delicious!!!! My family couldn’t even wait to get them on their plate, everybody was eating them out of the dish right out of the oven. Thank you 🙂 Mine did take longer than an hour to cook, about 1-1/2 hours, but it could have been because they were ginormous 😉 This recipe is a keeper; already written in my personal recipe book. Thank you 🙂