Celery is often underappreciated as a principal salad ingredient. The inner stalks of the head have a wonderful freshness, flavor, and delicacy when thinly sliced. Here I’ve paired them with fresh baby artichoke slices in a salad with lots of bright, subtle flavors and all kinds of crunch. Shards of hard cheese—either Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano—lend even more complexity to the mix. Use only firm and very small artichokes for this: they should feel tight and almost squeak when you squeeze them, and they should have no choke.

　　

Ingredients

serves 6

　　Freshly squeezed juice of 1 lemon

　　6 firm small artichokes, no more than 3 inches wide

　　8 to 12 tender celery stalks with leaves, from the inner part of the head (about 10 ounces)

　　

For the Dressing

1 1/2 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice, or more to taste

　　6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

　　3/4 teaspoon salt, or more to taste

　　A chunk of Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano*

　　

Trimming the Artichokes and Celery

Step 1

Stir the lemon juice into a bowl with a quart of cold water. The acidulated water will keep the artichoke slices from discoloring after you cut them.

　　

Step 2

Work with one artichoke at a time: Trim off the thick outside leaves, until you reach the tender, pale inside leaves. Cut off the tough bottom of the stem, but leave most of it (an inch or so) attached to the globe. With a vegetable peeler or paring knife, peel off the outer skin of the short stem, exposing the fresh layer underneath. Next, cut straight across the pointed top of the artichoke, removing the tips of the leaves and the darker, coarser top part, retaining only the pale green lower two-thirds. Drop the trimmed artichoke into the acidulated water. Trim he rest of them in this way, submerging them all in the bowl.

　　

Step 3

To prepare the celery, trim off the wide end of the celery stalks and pick off any coarse outer leaves, reserving only the tender, pale leaves. Peel the stalks if they’re dark, tough, or blemished. Slice each one on the diagonal, 1/8 inch thick, into delicate, translucent crescents. Chop the tender leaves, and put all the celery—about 2 cups—in a large mixing bowl.

　　

Making and Dressing the Salad

Step 4

When you’re ready to serve the salad, remove a trimmed artichoke from the lemon water and cut, from stem to top, in 1/8-inch slices; add them to the bowl. Quickly slice all the artichokes this way, and toss the celery and artichoke slices together with the lemon juice, the olive oil, and the salt.

　　

Step 5

With a vegetable peeler or sharp knife, shave about two dozen delicate large flakes of Parmigiano-Reggiano or Grana Padano from the chunk of cheese; each shaving should be a couple of inches long and 1 or 2 inches wide.

　　

Step 6

Fold the shavings of cheese gently into the sliced vegetables. Taste, and adjust dressing. Arrange the salad on a serving platter, or portion on salad plates. Shave more flakes of cheese, and scatter a dozen or more over the platter, or place three or four on top of each individual serving.

　　Cooks' Note

　　*You’ll need only about 1/4 pound sliced but it is easier to shave off slices from a good-sized chunk of cheese

　　From Lidia's Family table by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Copyright (c) 2004 by Lidia Matticchio Bastianich Published by Knopf.Lidia Bastianich hosts the hugely popular PBS show, "Lidia's Italian-American kitchen" and owns restaurants in New York City, Kansas City, and Pittsburgh. Also the author of Lidia's Italian Table and Lidia's Italian-American Kitchen, she lives in Douglaston, New York. Jay Jacob's journalism has appeared in many national magazines.From the Trade Paperback edition.