Stuffed Baby Artichokes

Included in this bento box lunch: carrots, radishes, steamed orange cauliflower with black sesame seeds, a little sauce container of avocado cilantro sauce (recipe here), and a stuffed baby artichoke. The stuffing includes panko bread crumbs, garlic scapes, lime juice, cilantro, and toasted sesame oil. It was great! This is the first time I tried out my new bunny bento box. It is pretty tiny, so I may have to save this one for snack bentos. I added an apple and a stick of cheese to the lunch because it wasn't quite enough food.

I got the baby artichokes from Larry at Triple T Ranch and Farm. Larry always has great produce and eggs. He's at the Santa Rosa Original Certified Farmers Market on Wednesdays and Saturdays, and also at the Sunday Sebastopol Farmers Market, plus other farmers markets. They also help run Bob's Fruit Truck on Highway 12, so you can pretty much always find Triple T.

This is the tiny bunny bento lunch box. I had just taken it out of the fridge, so that's why it's a little cloudy. It has a separator, but does not hold a large amount of food. I got this one at Ichiban Kan in SF Japantown.

Recipe for Stuffed Baby Artichokes

2 baby artichokes

1/2 cup panko bread crumbs

2 garlic scapes (or 1 clove garlic), chopped

2 tablespoons chopped cilantro

juice of 1 lime

1 tablespoon olive oil

4 drops toasted sesame oil

salt and pepper

Cut off the tops of the artichokes and remove the chokes with a spoon. Trim off some of the outer leaves and the bottom of the artichokes so that they will sit upright. Steam the artichokes for 1 minute and 30 seconds in the microwave. Allow to cool a bit while you make the stuffing. Combine the panko breadcrumbs, garlic scapes, cilantro, lime juice, olive oil, sesame oil and seasonings in a bowl. Stir so that the breadcrumbs are well combined with the other ingredients. Place the artichokes in a baking dish, and then spoon the stuffing into the empty chokes and also into the openings between the leaves. Pack the stuffing in well. Cover the artichokes with foil, then bake for 20 minutes in a preheated 350 degree oven. Serve hot or cold. Makes 2 stuffed baby artichokes.