The Old-School Italian Meal Frank Sinatra Ordered All The Time

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Frank Sinatra's favorite candy was Lifesavers rings, but his great culinary passion was the cuisine of his Italian heritage. Ol' Blue Eyes was the child of Italian immigrants — just like fellow Rat Pack member Dean Martin, whose most beloved food was his mom's pasta fagioli. When Sinatra dined at Patsy's Restaurant, his favorite Italian digs in Midtown NYC, he enjoyed several dishes, including veal Milanese, fusilli, and ricotta torte. According to the restaurant's Facebook page, however, Sinatra was especially fond of an appetizer that has a definite old-school cachet: stuffed artichokes. However, they did change it somewhat to accommodate Sinatra's dislike of strong garlic flavors. Sinatra had a strong bond with the management at Patsy's, to the point that the restaurant even opened specifically for him on Thanksgiving in the early 1950s, going so far as to invite family and friends of staff to trick Sinatra into believing they were normally open on that day.

One of the biggest mistakes you can make when ordering Italian food is sticking with middle-of-the-road safe dishes (hello, fettuccine Alfredo!) and Sinatra's artichokes are anything but safe to a modern audience. Artichokes can seem intimidating to prepare and to eat, since it takes no small amount of work both to process and to consume them. With the recipe from Patsy's, however, you are richly rewarded with a savory, filling stuffing that begs you to pull leaf after leaf off the prickly veggies.

If you've never shopped for an artichoke before, that's okay! You want one that feels weighty and substantial in your hand, with tightly closed leaves. If it's light and peeling, it may be past its prime. Once you have your perfect artichokes, you are ready to cook. With a well-sharpened knife, prep the artichokes by de-stemming and removing the choke and inner leaves, along with the top two inches of the vegetable. Meanwhile, make your stuffing of olives, capers, breadcrumbs, and cheese, all seasoned richly with classic Italian herbs and spices. The filled artichokes are then baked in a covered dish with a small amount of water so that steam can permeate the tough leaves.

Latter-day Italian-Americans, who might reserve the hard work of making stuffed artichokes for a holiday feast, have been known to riff slightly on the classic preparation Frank Sinatra enjoyed. Some recipes call for lemon zest and juice for brightness, for example. We've also seen the steaming liquid zhuzhed up with white wine and garlic for fragrance and infusion of flavor. In terms of prep, there are those who opt to steam the artichokes before stuffing them and only put the stuffed artichokes in a high-heat oven for about 15 minutes to brown and crisp up the filling. As is the case with all good family traditions, a little variation keeps things interesting.