Welcome back to our weekly Friday Feature at Hopium Health, where recipes sparkle with flavor, purpose, and the occasional architectural flair. Today, we’re flying to the shores of Venice (or at least the Cipriani kitchen) to spotlight a dish so simple and elegant, it practically hums in Italian.
Meet: The Cipriani Artichoke & Avocado Salad — where paper-thin baby artichokes mingle with creamy avocado, lemon sings in the background, and an edible Parmesan pyramid sits like a Roman temple atop the whole thing.
Why This Salad is Hopium-Worthy
- Artichokes: Rich in inulin (our favorite gut-friendly fiber), antioxidants, and liver-loving compounds.
- Avocados: Creamy good fats, potassium, fiber, and B vitamins = brain and belly bliss.
- Parmesan: Protein-rich, calcium-loaded, and umami-delicious. (Also: beautiful.)
- Lemon: Bright, zesty, and loaded with vitamin C. Keeps your artichokes from oxidizing, and your mood from deflating.
This is food that feeds your cells and your sense of aesthetic joy.
The Cipriani Artichoke & Avocado Salad
🛒 Ingredients (Serves 2)
- 3 baby artichokes (yellow and tender leaves only)
- 1 ripe avocado, diced small
- 1 lemon, juiced (plus more if needed)
- Extra virgin olive oil (just a drizzle)
- Salt and pepper, to taste
- 3 large slices of Parmesan, shaved or cut into triangles
🔪 Instructions:
- Prep the artichokes: Remove the outer leaves until you reach the pale, yellow tender ones. Slice the baby artichokes very thinly (paper-thin!) using a mandoline or sharp knife.
- Lemon soak: Immediately place the slices into a bowl of cold lemon water to prevent browning.
- Drain and squeeze: After 5 minutes, gently drain and pat dry or squeeze out excess lemon water.
- Toss gently: In a bowl, combine the sliced artichokes and diced avocado. Drizzle lightly with olive oil, season with salt and pepper, and toss gently.
- Plate artistically: Mound the salad into a soft hill on your plate.
- Parmesan pyramid: Place the three large Parmesan triangles over the mound in a pyramid-style structure, creating an architectural edible statement.
The Aesthetic = Part of the Medicine
This salad is light, refined, and deeply satisfying. It looks like something out of a design magazine, but it’s a fiber-rich, liver-loving, inflammation-fighting dish disguised as a chic appetizer.
Sometimes the best medicine doesn’t come in a bottle. It comes in a salad with high cheekbones.
Final Word: Eat Like a Venetian
This is more than a salad. It’s a celebration of simplicity, beauty, and gut health wrapped in lemon and draped in cheese.
At Hopium Health, we love recipes that nourish and inspire. This one does both.
Next Friday, we’re heading deeper into Mediterranean magic. Until then, slice well, eat slow, and build something beautiful. 🧀🌿🍋
