Artichokes en Papillote with Potatoes, Olives and Capers

Combine half of the lemon juice, all of the lemon rinds and 2 quarts of water into a bowl. Cut off the top quarter of each artichoke. Now cut the artichoke stems, leaving about 1 inch still attached. Remove the tough outer green leaves of each artichoke, and peel off the tough green skin of the remaining stem with a vegetable peeler. Cut the cleaned artichokes in half lengthwise and place them into the water mixture, allowing them to soak for about 10 minutes. Peel the potatoes and dice into 2-inch cubes. Place the cubes in a bowl of cold water.

In the meantime, prepare the your dish. Preheat the oven to 350˚F.

Cut four 12″ × 20″ pieces of parchment paper, fold each in half and reopen. Divide the artichokes, potatoes, olives, capers and oregano evenly between the pieces of parchment, and place them in the middle of the crease. Refold the parchment, enclosing the food, and starting from either end of the crease, make small overlapping folds all the way around.

Before sealing your ad hoc parchment sacks tight, add 3 tablespoons of white wine, 1½ tablespoons lemon juice, 1½ tablespoons olive oil, ½ tablespoon caper juice and ¼ teaspoon salt into each indidual bag.

Place papillotes onto a sheet tray and bake for approximately 20 minutes, or until artichokes are tender. Once cooked, remove from the sheet tray from the oven and cool for 5 or 10 minutes. This will minimize the risk of burning your hands from the escaping steam when you open the bags.

Serve with a side of mayonnaise for dipping, if desired. Serves 4.

Viognier or a Grüner Veltliner with just a bit of age are classic complements for any dish that incorporates artichokes,” says Jaime Kaloustian, beverage director at Dovetail. “Pascal Marthouret’s 2010 Condrieu exhibits scents of lavender while feeling textured and full of stone fruits on the palate. Another option would be Bründlmayer’s 2007 Alte Reben Grüner Veltliner from Kamptal. This wine exhibits harmonized notes of minerality, spice, acidity and notes of fresh green spring vegetables.”