Q: I loooove the artichokes that my grandmother makes, but have no clue how to cook them. They’re starting to come in my CSA box this week and I need to figure out what to do with them. Any advice and is it hard?

Beth Santa Barbara, Calfornia

Garden Eats: We love the artichokes that my grandmother, uncle John and my dad make, so we blended all three of their methods to create our own. And, yes, we guarantee it’s easy!

1. Artichoke prep is key! Be sure to chop off the top of your artichoke so it has a flat top (you’ll see from the pics). Now pull off the exterior leaves. You’ll know you’ve picked enough because the outer most leaves contain protective (and sharp) thistles at the crest of their leaves. We chop the stem making it blunt with the bottom of the artichokes so they’ll sit flat in our pan. Now, wash your artichokes thoroughly- dirt gets in those nooks, so a spray is great. Turn over in a colander to drain while you work on the next step.
2. Steaming. You will need (this is for four):

• olive oil
• 3 fresh rosemary sprigs
• fresh chopped garlic
• dried oregano 
• a large tall pan with a lid

i. Pour about 2 inches of water into your pan. Place artichokes bottom side down. Pour a generous

amount of olive oil over the top of each one.

ii. Sprinkle oregano, garlic and 2 sprigs of rosemary leaves over the top of each artichoke. Divide

remaining rosemary sprig into 4 pieces and toss in the water and olive oil.

iii. Cover your pan, bring to a quick boil and immediately turn down to low to steam. The taller your

pan, the less time you’ll have to cook. Why? Because the extra room allows the steaming process to

circulate and infuse the herbs into your artichokes. Do this for 30-45 minutes.

iv. Drizzle all the goodness left in the bottom of the pan over the top of each artichoke, serve and enjoy!