If you think that you will have a hard time getting your children to eat these, you are probably mistaken. This is a hands on, messy, sweet vegetable. After boiling the artichoke, we have always eaten the base of the leaves, in addition to the choke at the bottom. To do this, pull a leaf off. Flip it over so that the inside of the leaf will rest on your bottom teeth. Starting about halfway from the bottom of the leaf, gently bite down and drag the leaf through your teeth. Continue to remove leaves and strip the base until the leaves get small and soft. Using a spoon, carefully remove the rest of the leaves and the little stringy, hairy stuff. Discard and eat the delicious choke at the bottom.
If your children are like mine, they will ask for these every time that you go to the store. This will rate up there with chicken tenders. No kidding.
When you purchase these, make sure that the leaves are formed tightly. If you look in the photo, above, the cooked artichoke leaves have barely opened. That is because it was so compact when it was purchased. The more open the artichoke is, the older it is and the tougher it is.
To boil the artichokes, make sure that you have a large enough stock pot. If you want to remove the pointy tips of the leaves, a pair of kitchen shears work best. Just cut off the tips until you get to the top. Then using a very sharp knife, cut the top off. Place in a large pot and fill with water. Add salt the same way that you would to make pasta. My older sister places lemon slices in the water, but I do not. It is strictly up to you. Try it both ways and see what you like the best. Boil the artichokes until the outer leaves are easily removed with tongs. I allow 1 artichoke per person. But I could live on these if they were not so expensive. Let the artichokes cool and serve with drawn butter.
Enjoy!
Deloris
Printable Recipe: https://sites.google.com/site/basilandrosemarys/artichokes
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