Savory Pappardelle with Artichokes and Toasted Breadcrumbs

Before the recipe, a note on the word for artichoke, which in Venetian is articioco.
I have always found its similarity to English curious, and with a little research I found an interesting explanation: according to the experts, the English "artichoke" comes from "articiocco", a word common in northern Italy as a corruption of the Italian "carciofo", which in turn comes from the Spanish "alcarchofa", from the Arabic "al-kharshuf". The French "artichaut" and the German "Artischocke" also derive from the northern Italian form. According to the scholar Fiorenzo Toso, it was the Genoese word articiocca, descended from Arabic through old Spanish, that spread across northern Italy and then to German-speaking countries and perhaps France. (Source, in Italian.)

In Venice artichokes are among the most sought-after spring vegetables. The local purple variety is grown on the islands of the lagoon, including Sant'Erasmo, so artichoke dishes are very common on Venetian tables. In the simplest version they are stewed in oil and garlic and finished with parsley and pepper: this recipe is the starting point for today's dish, homemade pasta with artichokes and toasted breadcrumbs.
Different varieties of artichoke are at the market from autumn to spring, so you can enjoy this pasta for many months of the year.

20 baby artichokes
400 g durum wheat semolina
a pinch of turmeric
1 cup fresh savory leaves (or another herb you like)
1/2 cup chopped parsley
3 garlic cloves
1 cup breadcrumbs
1/2 lemon
extra virgin olive oil, salt, pepper

Make a dough with 380 g of semolina, water and, if you like, a pinch of turmeric for colour. Let it rest for 30 minutes. Then roll it out with a rolling pin into a thin sheet. Scatter the savory leaves over it, fold the sheet over the leaves and roll it out thin again, with the leaves inside. Use the remaining semolina to dust the worktop so the pasta doesn't stick. Cut strips of about 10 x 25 cm, roll them up loosely and cut each roll into 4, to get pappardelle 2 cm wide and 25 cm long.

Trim the artichokes, removing the tough leaves until you reach the tender hearts, and cut off the tips. As you go, put them in a bowl of water with the juice of half a lemon so they don't oxidise. Cook them the traditional Venetian way: heat a few tablespoons of oil in a pan with 2 peeled and crushed garlic cloves, add the artichokes and brown them on all sides, salt them, add a little hot water and cover. Let them stew for 20 minutes, then uncover and let the excess water evaporate; if they are tender, turn off the heat, otherwise keep cooking with a little more hot water. When they are cooked, set 8 artichokes aside. Slice the rest very thinly and put them back in the pan. In a small non-stick pan, fry three quarters of the breadcrumbs in a little oil and stir them into the sliced artichokes.

Bring a large pot of salted water to the boil and cook the pappardelle. Add a ladle of the pasta water to the artichokes and breadcrumbs, stir and put back on the heat.

Fry the remaining breadcrumbs with 5 to 6 tablespoons of oil, 1 chopped garlic clove and a pinch of salt, until slightly darker and crunchy.

Drain the pappardelle and toss them with the artichoke sauce, the parsley, a generous grind of pepper and a drizzle of oil if needed.

Serve hot, topped with the crunchy breadcrumbs and a couple of whole artichokes.