I must admit, for years I was perplexed by artichokes. Every time I saw them in the grocery store, with their hard looking exterior, I couldn\u2019t even imagine eating one. I had so many questions\u2026 How do you cook it? What\u2019s with the spike looking things on the outside? What does it taste like? How do you eat it? What can\u2019t you eat? I didn\u2019t want to be like that guy (you may have read about in the news recently) who ate the entire thing (hard parts and all) and got sick.
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\nMy first artichoke experience, as with many people I\u2019d imagine, was in a dip. Spinach Artichoke dip filled with mayo and cheese\u2026yummy for sure, however, I still had no idea what artichoke really tasted like under all the mayo, garlic, and cheese. Then, I had them marinated in olive oil and garlic on a salad bar\u2026.again yummy yummy. Slowly but surely, I moved away from the heavy oil covered variety, into the jars of artichoke hearts with water, and (my favorite) frozen artichoke hearts without marinade. I\u2019ve still chickened out of cooking a whole artichoke but, this spring\/summer when they are in season I have promised myself to rectify that matter.<\/p>\n

I am glad that I caught onto the band wagon. First, Artichoke hearts are especially buttery and creamy in texture with a delicate taste that goes well with just about anything. I often throw them into pasta, salads, sandwiches, dips, and even make it into a sandwich spread. Secondly, without the heavy marinades, Artichokes are cholesterol free, low in calories, fat free, free of saturated fat, and low in sodium. Thirdly, they are nutrient dense. They are packed with fiber, folate, magnesium, vitamin C, iron, calcium, phosphorus, B6, zinc, niacin, thiamin, copper, manganese, Vit A, Vit K, protein, carotenoids (lutein & zeaxanthin), and liver protective silymarin and cynarine.<\/p>\n

Drink too much? Eat too many fatty foods? Do you have digestive issues? Then artichokes should definitely be added to your diet! Artichokes are high in insoluble fiber, which helps in cleaning the intestinal tract, aids digestion, helps control weight and blood sugar levels, and nourishes the colon, among other things. Just 4-5 small artichoke hearts gives you 4.5 grams of fiber. The cynarine in artichokes also stimulates the production of bile. Bile acid is a critical part of digestion, absorption of fats, fat-soluble vitamins in the small intestine, part of controlling healthy cholesterol levels, and stimulates the liver.<\/p>\n

Speaking of your liver, it will truly thank you for adding this food to your diet. The liver’s main function is the metabolic transformation of nutrients from the food we eat. It\u2019s also responsible for detoxifying the body (pesticides, herbicides, toxins, alcohol, etc). An over-stressed liver obviously cannot function properly, which among other things results in poor assimilation of nutrients and increased toxins in the blood. This will eventually adversely affect the entire body causing numerous ailments. Artichokes however, are rich with cynarine and silymarin which boost the regeneration of liver cells, thus supporting healthy liver function.<\/p>\n

I could literally go on and on about how good these buttery little jewels are for your health and how good they taste. I really could. Try them for yourself today. And look out for my up coming episode for creamy artichoke leek soup! Yum!<\/p>\n