from a chowhound recipe.

i’m a sucker for all things artichokes, and when i saw this recipe i knew i had to make it. it’s deceptively simple, plus it gave me an excuse to use my new immersion blender (i used it once before on a disastrous squash soup — the blender worked fine, my recipe did not).

i was skeptical at first — i tasted the pesto at an early stage, when it was merely blended artichokes (i used canned), ricotta (i used organic), and olive oil (unfiltered sicilian). the mix was an ugly grayish color, and tasted muted. it was only after the addition of salt, pepper, and some grated lemon rind that it became elevated to something more than the sum of its (deliberately) humble parts.

once the pasta was cooked, i drained out most of the cooking water and put the pot back on the stove with the pesto. once it heated through it was done, and i garnished it with more grated lemon zest and black pepper.

i miscalculated the amount of sauce — i had too much for the amount of pasta i made, but it worked out fine. the leftover sauce worked as a creamy artichoke soup. the original recipe calls for minced basil, of which i had none. perhaps it would have made the dish even better, but that’s hard to imagine — it was pretty darned good as it was.

posted by Howard