Grilled Artichokes with Smoked Tomato-Chipotle Chile Mayonnaise

Morita chiles are red, fully mature Chipotles. This gives them a unique, medium – hot smokey flavor which is popular in many Southwestern dishes. These can be added to sauces (including Mole) to add smokey flavor and maintain the red color of the sauces. These peppers are about 2-4 inches in length, 1 inch in width, and have a deep brick reddish brown color. The word Chipotle translated to smoked chile. Consider the Chipotle a 6.5 on a scale of 1-10 (10 being the hottest). Scoville heat units 7,000-25,000.

Suggested Use:
Use Morita in enchilada sauces, chili, stews, barbecue ribs, and corn bread. Their smoky quality combines well with poultry, meats and fall squash.

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Ingredients:

4 large globe artichokes
4 Tbsp. butter
2 tsp. salt
1 tsp. freshly ground black pepper

Smoked Tomato-Chipotle Pesto:

1 tsp. chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce
1 Tbsp. minced sun-dried tomatoes in oil

1/2 cup mayonnaise

Instructions:

Smoked Tomato Pesto:

Combine the 1 tsp. of chopped chipotle pepper in adobo sauce and 1 Tbsp. of minced sun-dried tomatoes in oil in a mortar and muddle well. Set aside.

For the grilled artichokes:

Trim the artichokes with scissors to remove the leaves sharp edges. Bring 1-2″ of water to a boil in a large pot. Add the artichokes, and steam for 30 minutes or until the inside leaves and the hearts are tender. Drain and cool slightly.

Cut each artichoke in half. Snip around the fuzzy thistle (choke), and remove it with a spoon. Grill the artichoke halves for 8-10 minutes or until they are hot, basting with butter and sprinkling with salt and pepper. Combine the pesto and the mayonnaise in a small bowl and serve on the side.

Yields 8 servings.

Recipe adapted from Coastal Living Magazine, October 2006.