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Artichokes are three types of vegetables in the daisy family Asteraceae. When unqualified, the term "artichoke" nearly always refers to the globe artichoke, of which the aboveground part is eaten, in contrast to the other two, where a root part is eaten. They take approximately 45 minutes to cook.

• The Globe artichoke (Cynara cardunculus var. scolymus L.) is a species of thistle. The edible part of the plant is the base (receptacle) of the flower head in bud, properly called a vegetable as it is harvested well before any fruit develops.
• The Jerusalem artichoke Helianthus tuberosus is a species of sunflower. The edible part of the plant is the tuber.
• The Chinese artichoke Stachys affinis is a species of woundwort. The edible part of the plant is the tuber.

See also Project ARTICHOKE, a codename for a CIA operation.

Preparation Put in a pan of boiling water for 15 minutes or in bowl with a little bit of water to steam in microwave until soft. Pull off outer leaves of artichoke and dip fleshy lower part into butter, this flesh is the only edible part of the leaf. Once the leaves are removed, scrape off the hairy 'choke' and eat the base, or heart, with a little butter.

History The artichoke is native to the Mediterranean and Canary Islands whose origins date to around 350 BC when a Greek philosopher and naturalist, Theophrastus, wrote about seeing it in Italy and Sicily. The artichoke was both a delicacy and an aphrodisiac to the Greeks and Romans. Ancient Greeks believed that the artichoke was effective for use in ensuring the sex of your unborn child was male. The artichoke became scarce after Rome fell, but around the middle 15th century they were cultivated in Naples and eventually spread to the rest of Europe. In the 1500’s Catherine de Medici, who was married to King Henry II is said to have made the artichoke famous. She introduced it to France when she married King Henry III. When the French immigrants settled in the Louisiana Territory they brought the artichoke with them. The French colonists created artichoke fields in Louisiana and fields were also created in California by the Spanish in the late 1800’s.

The artichoke is an edible thistle, brought to California by Italians in the 1800's. The state's first artichoke farm was planted near the Bay Area. A single medium artichoke has about 6gm of carbohydrates. Almost 100% of all artichokes in the U.S. are grown commercially in California. Louisiana and California are the major areas in the US where the plant is grown as a perennial, usually starting as a cutting from a mother plant. This makes them sensitive to heat.

Health Artichokes, including leaves, were thought to be an aphrodisiac, a diuretic, a breath freshener and even a deodorant. Decoctions of artichoke leaves have been used as blood cleansers, cholerics, to improve bile production and secretion and to detox the liver and the skin.

Nutrients Artichokes contain vitamin C and nutrients that support the structure of capillaries. A diet of fruits and vegetables yields lower homocysteine levels, which means less risk of developing Alzheimer's disease (AD), according to a 2002 report from scientists at Boston University. High amounts of dietary potassium in vegetables appear to lessen the risk of forming kidney stones.

References 2004 Linda Stradley History of Artichokes. Accessed on Dec 12, 2005, http://whatscookingamerica.net/History/ArtichokeHistory.htm

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