Steamed Artichokes with Lemon-Garlic Butter

Ingredients

• 4 large globe artichokes (10 to 12 oz each)
• 1 lemon, halved, for rubbing and for the steaming water
• 5 cloves garlic: 2 smashed for the water and 3 finely grated for the butter
• 2 bay leaves
• 1/2 cup (1 stick) butter
• 1 tsp finely grated lemon zest
• 2 tbsp fresh lemon juice
• 1/4 tsp fine sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• a pinch of red pepper flakes
• 1 tbsp finely chopped parsley

Instructions

1. Trim the artichokes: Cut the stem of each artichoke to about 1 inch and peel its outer skin with a vegetable peeler. Lay the artichoke on its side and slice off the top inch with a serrated knife, then snip the thorny tip off each outer leaf with kitchen scissors and pull away the small, tough leaves around the base. Rub every cut surface with a lemon half as you go, since cut artichoke turns brown within minutes in the air.
2. Set up the steamer: Pour 2 inches of water into a large pot, squeeze in the lemon halves and drop them in, and add the smashed garlic and bay leaves. Set a steamer basket inside and bring the water to a boil over high heat. The lemon and garlic scent the steam, which seasons the leaves as they cook.
3. Steam: Stand the artichokes stem side up in the basket, cover the pot, and steam over medium-high heat for 25 to 40 minutes, depending on their size, until a leaf from the middle pulls out with an easy tug and a knife slides into the base without resistance. Check the water every 15 minutes and top it up with boiling water so the pot never runs dry.
4. Make the lemon-garlic butter: While the artichokes steam, melt the butter with the grated garlic in a small saucepan over low heat and let it bubble gently for 2 to 3 minutes, until the garlic is soft and fragrant but still pale. Take the pan off the heat and stir in the lemon zest, lemon juice, salt, a few grinds of pepper, the red pepper flakes, and the parsley. Low heat softens the garlic's bite without browning it, which would turn it bitter.
5. Drain and serve: Lift the artichokes out with tongs and turn them upside down on a towel for a minute so water trapped between the leaves runs out. Set one on each plate with a small bowl of the warm butter for dipping.
6. Eat to the heart: Pull off the leaves one at a time, dip the pale base in the butter, and scrape off the tender flesh with your teeth. When you reach the thin, purple-tipped inner leaves, pull them out in one cone, scoop away the fuzzy choke with a spoon, and cut the heart into pieces to dip in the last of the butter.