Artichokes

Artichokes are complex vegetables, with their tasty flesh hidden deep within an armor of overlapping leaves and protected by tiny, sharp spines. In the center of the artichoke is the hairy choke, a crown of inedible, fibrous spines. Once the many inedible parts are removed, proportionally little of the artichoke is left to eat. In fact, the edible part can be as little as 30%.

This edible portion is called the artichoke heart. It consists of the cup-shaped artichoke bottom and the tender, edible interior leaf bases. In addition, the thick stems of large artichokes have edible cores. The edible flesh of an artichoke is pale yellow or white. Green or purple parts are fibrous and are not eaten.