Christina's Cucina

An impassioned Italian Scot sharing how to cook authentically, and travel with enthusiasm.

  • Home
  • About
  • Recipes
    • Course or Meal
      • Appetizers
      • Breakfast/Brunch
      • Dessert
      • Main Course
      • Salads
      • Side Dishes
      • Soups
    • Cuisine
      • Italian
      • Scottish (British)
      • Other Cuisines
        • Asian
        • French
        • German
        • Greek
        • Mexican
        • Other
    • Ingredient
      • Beef
      • Cheese
      • Chicken (Poultry)
      • Chocolate
      • Eggs
      • Fish & Shellfish
      • Fruit
      • Legumes
      • Pasta and Rice
      • Pork & Lamb
      • Potatoes
      • Vegetables
    • Special Diets
      • Dairy Free
      • Egg Free
      • Gluten Free
      • Nut Free
      • Vegan
      • Vegetarian
    • Types of Food
      • Beverages
        • Alcoholic
        • Non-Alcoholic
      • Bread, Cookies & Pastries
      • Cakes & Pies
      • Candies, Sweets & Confections
      • Dressings, Sauces, Syrups & Toppings
      • Jams
      • Pickles
      • Sandwiches & Snacks
    • Non Sequitur
      • “How To…”
      • My Rants & Recommendations
  • Travel
  • Work with Me

Home » Uncategorized » Five Reasons To Eat Artichokes

Five Reasons To Eat Artichokes

May 12th, 2014 | 24 Comments

Do you eat artichokes? Artichokes are not only delicious, but incredibly nutritious. I’ll give you 5 reasons why you should be adding them to your menu.

I’d never seen so many artichokes in my life.

Seriously. I cannot describe to you my feelings after stepping in between the rows and rows of artichoke plants, with perfectly formed, purple Sangria artichokes popping up to the heavens for as far as the eye could see. It was surreal.

I was at Baroda Farms in Lompoc, California, along with my blogger friends Cathy from She Paused For Thought, Valentina from Cooking on the Weekends, Kelly from Tasting Page and Judy, who organized the event, from Two Broads Abroad.

Basic Recipe: How to Prepare and Eat Artichokes

steamed Artichokes

Mary and Oakley from Frieda’s Produce, were our gracious hosts along with Steve Jordan, owner of Baroda Farms, who gave us such a fantastic tour of his artichoke fields and filled us with awe as he recounted many facts and stories relating to the prickly thistles.

As this was my first farm outing, I didn’t realize the beauty I was to witness that day, so I only had my iPhone, but everyone else brought their “real” cameras. I urge you to visit my colleagues’ sites as some of their shots are truly breathtaking; you will find all the links at the bottom of this post.

Artichokes aren’t just wonderful to look at and the most photogenic of thistles, there are many reasons why you should be eating artichokes, if you aren’t already…and here are my Top Five:

5 Reasons to Eat Artichokes

1. They’re easy to cook, and extremely versatile.  

Don’t be scared of them. I know they look very intimidating, but they are so easy to work with when you know what to do: Here are two recipes to get you started with one of the most common artichokes, complete with step by step directions.

If you don’t want to mess around, here is the simplest and tastiest way to prepare artichokes, as I posted above.

If you do want to mess around, and “gild the lily” so to speak, then click HERE.

another way to cook and eat artichokes, stuffed

2. They are good for your health.  

From the Washingtonion:

They are a great source of fiber.“In addition, artichokes contain polyphenols, which are disease-fighting compounds. They’re also a treasure trove of anti-inflammatory antioxidants. A 2004 study by the US Department of Agriculture found that artichokes were one of the top vegetables in terms of total antioxidant levels. They also contain vitamins C and K, magnesium, potassium, and folate.”

(I have to add my two cents here: like so many healthy foods, some people tend to make artichokes less healthy, by dipping them in mayonnaise. Step away from the mayo and try steaming them with a little olive oil, salt and garlic, which will increase the artichokes’ final nutritional value, and flavor; the recipe is at the top).

3. Artichokes are incredibly delicious.

This is subjective, I know, but you don’t realize how picky I am when it comes to fruits and vegetables! Artichokes have such a unique and pleasing flavor; you at least need to try them if you haven’t done so.

how to eat artichokes

4. Impressive.

Okay, tell me who isn’t impressed by someone who loves to eat artichokes?

5. Patriotic: help your fellow Americans!

In my opinion, Americans do not eat artichokes nearly as often as they should. They are not widely available to those in smaller towns, simply because there are not enough people to buy them if they were to be sold in their markets. Let’s spread the good news of the beautiful artichoke: tell your produce manager that you want to discover the wonderful world of artichokes! The more artichokes we eat, the more popular they will become!

After our trip to Baroda Farms, we decided to cook and eat artichokes together, because that’s what food bloggers do! To see more about artichokes and find out what we cooked together, see the links below.

how to cook and eat artichokes

With special thanks to Frieda’s Produce and
Steve Jordan of Baroda Farms!

Left to right: Valentina from Cooking on the Weekends

Judy from My Well Seasoned Life

Cathy from She Paused For Thought

Me

Front and center, Kelly from Tasting Page

 

Life in LA…

A mural in Lompoc, about a two hour drive north of LA.

You may also enjoy these...

  • The Simplest, Most Delicious Artichokes…Ever!The Simplest, Most Delicious Artichokes…Ever!
  • Breaded Artichoke HeartsBreaded Artichoke Hearts
  • Lidia’s Mushroom and Black Olive Stuffed ArtichokesLidia’s Mushroom and Black Olive Stuffed Artichokes
  • Dear Shishito Peppers: Where Have you Been all my Life?Dear Shishito Peppers: Where Have you Been all my Life?
Older Post
My Nutty, Scottish-Italian Dad’s Video Tutorial on How to Make Spaghetti with Anchovies
Newer Post
Roasted Rhubarb with Creme Fraiche, Mascarpone or Whipped Cream
4 shares
  • Share
  • Tweet
  • Email
  • Yummly
  • Flipboard

Country, My Rants & Recommendations, Uncategorized, USA · Artichokes, Baroda Farms, Food Bloggers, Frieda's Produce, Healthy, How to Prepare Artichokes, Preparing Artichokes, Travel

Reader Interactions

24 Responses

  1. The Simplest, Most Delicious Artichokes...Ever! - Christina's Cucina says:
    April 18, 2018 at 12:19 pm

    […] (You can read about my trip to an artichoke farm HERE.) […]

    Reply
  2. Artichokes: Field Trip to Baroda Farms - My Well Seasoned Life says:
    April 8, 2015 at 3:44 pm

    […] site She Paused for Thought or maybe you checked out Valentina’s of Cooking on the Weekend or Christina’s Cucina’s or Kelly’s of Tasting […]

    Reply
  3. Judy Lyness says:
    May 20, 2014 at 5:25 pm

    It was a wonderful day and cooking them was just as fun. Can’t wait for our next adventure

    Reply
    • Christina Conte says:
      May 22, 2014 at 3:35 am

      Me too, Judy! So much fun!!

      Reply
  4. Sippity Sup says:
    May 18, 2014 at 3:35 pm

    I regret my decision to skip this adventure and stay in bed on that morning! GREG

    Reply
    • Christina Conte says:
      May 22, 2014 at 3:35 am

      :(

      Reply
  5. Cocoa and Lavender says:
    May 14, 2014 at 9:40 pm

    Love, love, love artichokes! And I can think of more than 59 reasons per artichoke!! Each leaf is just so good and meaty…. I loved both your and Valentina’s shots. Thanks for sharing! ~ David

    Reply
    • Christina Conte says:
      May 18, 2014 at 3:45 pm

      Thanks, David!!

      Reply
« Older Comments

Trackbacks

  1. The Simplest, Most Delicious Artichokes...Ever! - Christina's Cucina says:
    April 18, 2018 at 12:19 pm

    […] (You can read about my trip to an artichoke farm HERE.) […]

    Reply
  2. Artichokes: Field Trip to Baroda Farms - My Well Seasoned Life says:
    April 8, 2015 at 3:44 pm

    […] site She Paused for Thought or maybe you checked out Valentina’s of Cooking on the Weekend or Christina’s Cucina’s or Kelly’s of Tasting […]

    Reply

Join the Discussion Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Primary Sidebar

Meet Christina

A Scottish Italian cook living in Los Angeles, Christina is usually cooking, baking or (cr)eating something scrumptious. When she isn't in the kitchen, she loves to travel, near and far, as long as good food is involved. Christina is on a mission to save authentic Italian dishes from extinction, and is constantly promoting Scottish (and British) food as some of the best cuisine the world has to offer—one steak pie and sticky toffee pudding at a time.



Newsletter

Most Popular Recipes

cucumber and cream cheese sandwich rolls

Cucumber and Cream Cheese Sandwich Rolls (with Lavash Bread)

Sicilian Whole Orange cake on a plate with oranges

Sicilian Whole Orange Cake (Using an Entire Orange: Peel, Juice and Pulp)

Perfect Yeast Doughnuts

Perfect Yeast Doughnuts (Donut Recipe with 3 Fillings)

Footer

More please…

pasta e ceci in a Deruta bowl

Pasta e Ceci (Authentic Italian Pasta and Chick Peas Recipe)

Meyer lemon cake flatlay

Meyer Lemon Cake (Bundt Cake with Glaze or Icing)

slice of rhubarb meringue tart

Rhubarb Tart (with or Without Meringue)

breakfast at the Mermaid Inn in Rye with black pudding

Black Pudding aka Blood Sausage – Everything you Ever Wanted to Know

pouring rhubarb sauce over ice cream

Rhubarb Sauce (Easy, 2 Ingredient Recipe)

fried black pudding Scotch eggs

Black Pudding Scotch Eggs

Return to top of page
Copyright� 20112019 · Privacy Policy · Log in

4 shares