Artichokes

You have only to visit a Roman street market in mid-morning - the bustling Campo de’ Fiori under the great, grey Palazzo Farnese, or the steeply inclined street just past the Trevi fountain - to see some of the most beautiful food in existence. Great platters of fish in all the colours of the rainbow; fruit and vegetables spilling from the stalls almost to the pavement; golden-yellow cheeses; milk-fed lambs and young kid no bigger than hares; tender young leaves of spinach; green cabbage and red cabbage, picked when still hardly more than sprouts - just right to be included raw, along with crisp pink radishes, in the salads so appreciated by the Romans; and minute purple artichokes, perfect for making one of Rome’s most famous dishes, carciofi alla romana - young artichokes cooked Roman style - high on the list of specialities not to be missed in Rome.