A Walk in the Gypsum Hills

Today I meet up with my friend Francoise, who lives in the village and is an excellent cook. For years I have never quite got it when trying to prepare and cook artichokes, so today I had a lesson with her. But first we did a lovely walk up in our local gypsum hills that overlook our village, passing by a cross dedicated to a young man with the poignant words written “Smile at life and life will smile at you”. Back in her kitchen we started the preparation of the artichokes. She showed me how to cook the large and the smaller artichokes, called violets. The latter are peeled and cooked with onions, lardons, a splash of white wine, rice and water. The bigger artichokes are again peeled and submerged in plenty of salted boiling water. Then drained upside down and eaten with a vinaigrette or an indulgent hollandaise sauce. The leaves are dipped in said sauce and one eat them by pulling the ends through your teeth. We had more of a supper tonight rather than dinner as we had eaten the leftover ragu for lunch. My favourite supper is welch rabit, which we ate with a side of rocket from Francoise’s garden.