okey dokey artichokey

I love artichokes. LOOOOOVE. When I saw this big daddy at the farmers' market for $0.99, I pounced. I wanted SO badly to make homemade mayonnaise to dip it in, but sadly, I gave up after reading 30 recipes, watching 7 videos, and 2 actual failed attempts. If I ever figure it out, I promise you guys will be the first to know.

So instead, you get a very, VERY easy lemon-tahini sauce recipe. Which turned out to be just exquisite, and perfect with the artichoke. You could also thin it out with some hot water to make a nice tangy salad dressing.

(PS> to steam an artichoke, cut the bottom off so it will sit flat, cut the top off, and trim any thorns off the outer leaves. Sit in a couple of inches of simmering water for 20-40 minutes based on the size of your artichoke. It's done when a leaf comes off easily. I read to put some lemon juice in the water to keep it bright green but that didn't work for me... maybe next time I'll throw in a half a lemon instead of just squeezing the juice?)

Tools:
small food processor

Ingredients:
about 1/4 C of tahini
juice of 1/2 lemon-1 lemonsalt
1 clove garlic, pressed, grated, or microplaned
pinch of hot pepper flakes (optional)

Directions:
Put tahini, about half of your lemon juice, a pinch of salt, and the garlic in your food processor and pulse several times. Taste, and adjust for lemon and salt, then serve!