How to use artichoke scraps

Artichoke scraps and leftovers are full of flesh, taste and nutrients that can be easily extracted and reused to make simple, nutritious and delicious zero-waste artichoke recipes.

In this blog post we show you how to cook and use artichoke scraps to prepare 4 delicious vegan artichoke recipes.

With artichoke scraps we mean the stalk, leaves, thorns, petals, and peel that you would normally throw away when you prepare artichokes.

To use them, we first wash the scraps, then we boil them for about 1 hour, and then we extract the flesh with a simple rotary vegetable mill. The result is a delicious artichoke concentrate that can be used in many ways.

In this blog post we use stalk, petals and cooking water of the artichokes to make 4 delicious zero-waste recipes: artichoke hummus, artichoke cream, artichoke mayonnaise and spaghetti with artichoke cooking water.

To learn more about artichokes, check out our guide “how to cook artichokes“, which includes 10 delicious and easy artichoke recipes.

Ingredients

For the artichoke hummus

We make artichoke hummus with the scraps – leftover leaves and stems – of the artichokes. We first boiled the scraps in water, then extract the pulp with a rotary vegetable mill.

Then in a blender we mix the artichoke pulp with chickpea, lemon, tahini, mint, olive oil, salt and pepper for a unique, creamy, nutritious and delicious artichoke spread.

• Artichoke scraps: to flavour the hummus we used the flesh extracted from boiled artichoke leaves and stems.
• Chickpea: we use canned chickpeas but other legumes work too.
• Extra virgin olive oil: in this hummus we use olive oil instead of Tahin. The flavour of the olive oil goes perfectly with artichoke. If you want you can replace olive oil with Tahin.
• Lemon juice: just a tablespoon to add some acidity, freshness and flavour to the hummus.
• Mint leaves: we add a few leaves of mint because mint is a perfect match to artichokes. You can replace mint with parsley.
• Tahini: made with hulled sesame seeds. It’s essential in hummus.
• Salt and pepper: add both to bring out the artichoke flavour.

For the artichoke cream

This artichoke cream is made with 100% pure artichoke pulp extracted from the boiled scraps (leaves and stems) of the artichokes with a rotary vegetable mill. We only add a pinch of salt to this concentrate of flavour and nutrients. This is one of the most delicious and pure vegetable creams I have ever tasted. And it’s made from artichoke waste!

• Artichoke scraps: we use the flesh extracted from boiled artichoke leaves and stems as the base for this cream. It’s so delicious you won’t need many other ingredients.
• Salt and pepper: add both to bring out the artichoke flavour.
• Soy cream: we add just a tablespoon of soy cream for two reasons. First for a beautiful white and green visual effect. Second, to add fat to the otherwise fat-free artichoke cream. You can replace soy cream with extra virgin olive oil.

For the artichoke mayonnaise

This is best served with steamed artichokes. We first make a standard vegan mayonnaise with 2 parts of vegetable oil (we like to mix 25% olive oil and 75% sunflower oil) and 1 part of soy milk. Add a dash of lemon juice, a pinch of salt then mix it with the artichoke pulp extracted from the scraps of the artichokes with a rotary vegetable mill. Delicious!

• Vegan mayonnaise: we make our own by blending together 1 part of soy milk and 2 parts of vegetable oil (75% sunflower seed oil and 25% olive oil). We then add a pinch of salt and lemon juice for a delicious vegan mayo.
• Artichoke scraps: to flavour the mayonnaise we used the flesh extracted from boiled artichoke leaves and stems.

Spaghetti aglio, olio and artichoke sauce

Another zero-waste vegan recipe, this time made with the leftover cooking water from our roman-style braised artichokes. This is so simple, yet so delicious. All you have to do is to take all the leftover cooking water of your braised artichokes, then cook some spaghetti al dente and mix it in the artichoke water. Add some olive oil, fresh parsley, and if you still have some, a few pieces of artichokes. Enjoy!

• Leftover artichoke sauce: as a sauce for this delicious spaghetti dish we use the leftover sauce from our braised artichoke recipe (carciofi alla romana).
• Spaghetti: bronze-cut Italian made spaghetti are best for this recipe. Naturally vegan and made with only hard-wheat flour and water.
• Coarse salt: to season the pasta cooking water.
• Parsley: we sprinkle it on the pasta to add freshness and colour.
• Olive oil: you might need to add a dash of olive oil to make this dish extra delicious.

Equipment

To make our artichoke hummus, cream and mayonnaise you need a rotary vegetable mill to extract the pulp from the scraps of the artichoke. You can easily find one on amazon and its a perfect tool to make really good tomato passata, mashed potatoes, and to turn any legume and vegetable into a delicious, thick and earthy cream.

Tips 

• Boil the scraps long enough: artichoke scraps are though due to their high fibre content. Boil them for at least 1 hour.
• Use a rotary vegetable mill: an old style rotary vegetable mill with a medium disc is the best tool to extract the pulp out of the scraps. You can easily get one on Amazon.
• Blend the pulp: do NOT use a blender to extract the pulp from the scraps, use a vegetable mill instead. However, once you have extracted the pulp it is best to blend it at high speed to break apart the little pieces of fibre that are left in the pulp and make the whole thing smoother.