Shrimp with artichokes and tomato

I nabbed this recipe this weekend from Bernard Loiseau's home cookbook. (Loiseau, of course, is famous as the chef who commited suicide when rumours emerged of his losing a Michelin star). It's adapted somewhat from Loiseau's original langoustines, but still, I'm in his spirit.

In short, you get some shrimp, and make a stock of their shells, an exercise which differs from meat stocks in that it takes only a few minutes. While you're doing that, cook the artichoke hearts in olive oil, with onion. Just as they start getting tender (at about 5 minutes), pour the shrimp stock into the artichokes. This result in vegetables that taste subtly, but unmistakably, of shellfish. The tomato sauce is served cold - it's nothing more than the simplest tomato and onion mixture, pureed, and the shrimp were cooked for the least possible time on a griddle.

The dish is a playful experiment in contrast. Hot shrimp, cold tomato sauce, hot artichokes. As Loiseau points out, the creaminess of the shrimp against the acidity of the tomato. I served with a Sancerre, which I'll describe later. A wonderful summer dish.