Vegan Stuffed Artichoke Bottoms in Pomegranate and Swiss Chard Sauce

This is the easiest and most impressive vegan dish you'll serve for the holiday table – guaranteed.

These stuffed veggies are ready in 10 minutes and devoured in half a minute because they are soft, tender, and accompanied by a sweet and sour sauce.

For anyone jumping up and asking, "Where do you get artichoke bottoms at the end of summer?" I'll answer: buy them frozen and keep them in the freezer until you're ready to cook. It's that simple.

You don't need to complicate the filling either. I used vegan patties made from adzuki beans, zucchini, and eggplant from Munbatim (who also helped in creating this recipe, and thanks to them for that, it helps me continue creating recipes for the blog).

For those unfamiliar with their patties, I'll tell you that they contain only natural ingredients like beans, zucchini, rice, onion, eggplant, and spices. Delicious, healthy, and wonderful.

I thawed the patties, which come frozen, outside the refrigerator and crumbled them with a fork.

They come already seasoned, so there's no need to add anything.

In my opinion, the best part of this steaming pot of vegan stuffed vegetables is that each serving contains a high amount of dietary fiber, which helps with satiety. The dietary fiber comes from the vegetable we are stuffing. In this dish, it comes from the artichoke bottoms.

A Little About Vegan Stuffed Artichoke Bottoms

As mentioned, I used frozen Jerusalem artichoke bottoms that I found in the supermarket's frozen section.

If you are reading this recipe in the spring and manage to get your hands on fresh artichoke bottoms - you've won!

For the filling, I used patties made of adzuki beans, zucchini, and eggplant, which are already seasoned and ready to use.

You can substitute with any of the patties from Munbatim's range.

For the sauce, I used pomegranate juice, which gives a sweet taste and balances the sourness of the lemon. You can replace it with any juice you like (if you're adventurous, go for apple).

The sauce itself has fresh Swiss chard leaves that give it body. You can substitute with fresh spinach.

Nutritional Values by Clinical Dietitian and Fitness Coach Noam Bechar:

One vegan stuffed artichoke (out of 9) with a tablespoon of sauce, weighing a total of 117 g (4.1 oz), will contain:

96 calories

3.5 grams of protein

13.5 grams of carbohydrate

3.3 grams of fat

2.6 grams of dietary fiber

Want another idea for patties? How about beet and quinoa patties?

Vegan Stuffed Artichoke Bottoms

In a pomegranate and Swiss chard sauce

Prep Time 10 minutes

Servings 9 stuffed artichokes

Calories 90 kcal

Ingredients

• 1 wide, shallow, oven-safe pot
• 8 patties adzuki bean, zucchini, and eggplant patties from Munbatim 340 g (12.0 oz)
• 9 bottoms frozen or fresh artichoke no need to thaw beforehand

For the sauce

• 3-4 shallots
• 3-4 cloves of sliced garlic
• 6 tsp olive oil
• juice of half a lemon
• 1.5 cups pomegranate juice 150 ml (2/3 cup)
• 3-4 leaves of Swiss chard, coarsely chopped including the white part
• salt to taste
• 1/2 tsp sumac optional
• 3 Persian lemons (dried limes) optional

For Garnish

• 3 tbsp pomegranate seeds
• a little chopped parsley

Instructions

Prepare the filling

1. Thaw the patties outside the refrigerator or in the microwave and transfer to a deep bowl.

   

2. Using a fork or your hands, crumble the patties well.

   

3. Add a little water (one or two tablespoons) and mix the mixture well until it becomes sticky.

4. Trim the base of each artichoke bottom so that it can stand upright in the pot and not tip over.

5. Using your hand, form a small ball from the patty mixture and press it into the artichoke bottom.

   

6. Repeat the process with all the other artichoke bottoms.

Prepare the sauce

1. In a shallow pot, sauté the shallots and garlic for a few minutes.

2. Add the Swiss chard leaves and a little salt and mix.

3. Sauté the chard leaves for 2-3 minutes until they lose their volume.

4. Add the lemon juice and pomegranate juice and mix.

   

5. If you have Persian lemons (dried limes), add them to the sauce now.

6. Cover the pot and cook on low heat for 30-40 minutes until the sauce reduces.

   

7. Occasionally, peek and check that the liquids are not completely evaporated. If they are, add a little more pomegranate juice.

8. After 40 minutes, heat the oven to medium heat with the top broiler on.

9. Drizzle a little olive oil over the patties and put them in the oven for 10 minutes for a quick browning.

   

To serve

1. Sprinkle with a little sumac, pomegranate seeds, and a little chopped parsley.