Marinated artichoke hearts may have inedible roughage from the plant attached to them, by virtue of it being cut from the center where that stuff is, and also having more mature leaves on the outer edge of the slice which can be unpleasant to eat.
Your mileage on this varies? I get mine at Trader Joe’s, but I’ve had a lot of brands.
And, as you might expect, Castroville is home to the World’s Largest Artichoke.
I don’t use the marinated- I use the frozen plain hearts.
That stuff might choke Artie but it ain’t gonna choke Stymie!
Even as a little kid, I thought that if I was so hungry I was stealing food from grown ups ready to beat the shit outta me over an artichoke, I’d find a way to choke it down.
I would’ve voted for “artichoke hearts are pretty good and I like them in salad, but wouldn’t undergo withdrawal symptoms if I didn’t always have a supply”.
I’m with you, baby! I used to steam chokes once every couple of weeks or so, but the prices seem to be rather high lately. All those wildfires around Castroville, I suppose.
Lemon juice mixed into good olive oil can substitute for melted butter, if you’re watching your cholesterol.
I always keep a box or two of frozen artichoke hearts on hand, but the marinated ones are the best. You can get BIG ones in the jar, swimming in oil, garlic, and herbs, imported from Italy, that beat out the domestic product.
If you dislike the roughage, keep an eye out for artichoke BOTTOMS, sold canned in water, no sharp bits at all. Somewhere in the pickle section, if you’re lucky enough to have a shop that carries them regularly. Put them in a salad or eat them plain with a little olive oil, vinegar, and salt. Purely soft and blissful.
I have a Parisian recipe I’ve mentioned here before where you set them in a shallow casserole with beaten egg yolk, cream, and shredded Gruyere and bake just long enough for the custard to set.
Hummus? Yeah, hummus is good, too!
Yes, I love artichoke hearts. I put the grilled ones in frittatas or in scrambled eggs.
Baby artichokes are so small, tender, and choke free, that, once they are trimmed, they are mostly heart. Good fried, or in soups, or by themselves. If you are watching fat, use vinegar. A little balsamic makes the slightly bitter artichoke taste very very sweet.
As long as we are talking artichoke, stuffing big ones is tasty, too. When I do that I have them vertically, so it’s easy to clean out the choke without losing any precious heart/bottom. Dang! Now I want a nice big artichoke stuffed with shrimp…
I like hummus. In the days when I was a vegetarian, I’d make it myself. I would only fork-mash the chickpeas instead of blending them smooth, use extra garlic, and go a lighter on the tahini than the usual recipe.
Dairy tastes good afterward. Yogurt or just a swig of cold milk. Your mouth may vary.
ETA: Artichokes. Haven’t made good hummus yet.
Me too. My newest favorite pizza is artichoke hearts, garlic, kalamata olives, feta and mozzarella.
I love artichokes in season, with melted butter. And I have a good recipe for chicken with canned artichoke hearts. One of the many advantages of living in California, close to Castroville.
One of my favorite snacks is hummus w/roasted pine nuts on garlic triscuits. I’ve tried artichoke hummus but it doesn’t do much for me. Now, artichoke/spinach/jalapeno dip…yum!
This reminds me of a joke:
Rather longish, so I’ll spoiler it.
[spoiler]Tired of being broke and stuck in an unhappy marriage, a young husband decided to solve both problems by taking out a large insurance policy on his wife and arranging to have her killed.
A “friend of a friend” put him in touch with a nefarious underworld figure, who went by the name of “Artie.” Artie explained to the husband that his going price for snuffing out a spouse was $5,000. The husband said he was willing to pay that amount, but that he wouldn’t have any cash on hand until he could collect his wife’s insurance money.
Artie insisted on being paid in part up front. The man opened up his wallet and displayed the single dollar bill that rested inside. Artie sighed, rolled his eyes, and reluctantly agreed to accept the dollar as down payment for the dirty deed.
A few days later, Artie followed the man’s wife to the local Safeway grocery store. There, he surprised her in the produce department and proceeded to strangle her with his gloved hands. As the poor unsuspecting woman drew her last breath and slumped to the floor, the manager of the produce department stumbled unexpectedly onto the scene. Unwilling to leave any witnesses behind, Artie had no choice but to strangle the produce manager as well.
Unknown to Artie, the entire proceedings were captured by hidden cameras and observed by the store’s security guard, who immediately called the police. Artie was caught and arrested before he could leave the store.
Under intense questioning at the police station, Artie revealed the sordid plan, including his financial arrangements with the hapless husband.
And that is why, the next day in the newspaper, the headline declared: “Artie chokes two for a dollar at Safeway.”[/spoiler]
I don’t think I’ve ever met a human who disliked them. They’re delicious.
Hummus is gross to mediocre though. Don’t like chickpea/garbanzo based foods. I will always substitute baba ganoush or something.