Alchocofa temblada y jamón
ingredients for 4 persons
8 fine slices of Spanish raw ham (e.g., jamón serrano), 8 small artichokes, 2 thick shallots, 2 stalks of celery, 2 tomatoes, 2 lemons, 2 cloves of garlic, 2 sprigs of thyme, 2 leaves of bay leaf, a few sprigs of basil, a few sprigs of parsley, a few sprigs of chives, 1 dl of sherry (e.g., type ‘fino’), 2 dl of olive oil, dash of sherry vinegar, pepper, salt
Preparation
Clean the artichokes (check on the internet how to do this conveniently). Peel the shallots and chop them as finely as possible. (Tiny shallot chips refine the dish) Skin the tomatoes and first cut them into quarters, remove the seeds and then cut the flesh into very small cubes. Bring water to a boil to cook the artichoke hearts in. Let them cook gently for about 8 minutes. Then leave the artichoke hearts in the hot water for another 5 minutes. (Prick the artichoke heart pieces with a knife tip to check if they are cooked.)
Meanwhile, heat a generous amount of olive oil over low heat. Add the shredded shallot. Sauté them glazed in the oil. Avoid discoloring them. Crush the garlic cloves and place them unpeeled in the oil with shallot. Also add the sprigs of thyme and the bay leaves. Rinse the celery stalks, remove the foliage and peel away the toughest fibers with a peeler. Cut the celery into tiny pieces and cook them along with the shallot shreds and with the herbs. Scoop the cooked artichoke hearts from the hot water and cut them into quarters. (The very smallest ones are best divided into two equal pieces.) Pour the sherry with the braised shallot and celery and stir. Let the alcohol evaporate, add the artichoke pieces and the diced tomatoes. Pour a dash of sherry vinegar into the preparation with artichoke and season the dish with ground pepper and a pinch of salt. Rinse the (herbs) clean and chop their leaves as finely as possible. Stir the shredded basil, parsley and chives into the warm vinaigrette with artichoke hearts.
Prepare
Spoon a portion of the lukewarm artichoke pieces into a deep plate, along with some of the warm vinaigrette with sherry. Tear slices of Spanish serrano ham into pieces and drape over each serving.
