It’s near the end of July and I'm so happy to be back writing this blog. I didn’t write a blog for June even though so many flowers were calling to me! June was spent developing my new business “Nature ‘n Nosh” and everything was put on hold. This blog was part of the inspiration behind my new business. I discovered that I love not just flowers, plants and trees,but every little detail about them. I have also been moving more and more into the world of foraging and what part of the plant is edible and when. Nature 'n Nosh is not a straightforward foraging tour but the whole world behind what you are eating!In July there are a lot less flowers around, it is very hot and we are feeling it as much as the nature around us is feeling it! The best time to go out is that magical time as the sun starts to set, the fierce heat goes out of it, and even the driest shrubbery takes on that delicate pink tinge. Suddenly poking up from the pink dried grasses is a deep shade of purple, so rich that it looks like it has been mixed in a paint shop and then enhanced with a magic wand! This is the Kinras Suri – Cynara Syriaca, or Wild Artichoke.
The scientific name is from the Greek – cynara means spiny plant, and the Latin cinara is a kind of artichoke and also the name of the island of Cinara now called Zinara in the Aegean Sea. In the Hebrew the name Kinras is mentioned in the Mishnah Kilayim 5:8 “Artichokes (Kinras) are kilayim in a vineyard” Kilayim is the Jewish laws of not mixing plants and seeds together. In this case it seems that wild artichokes should not be allowed to grow up in a vineyard.
While it is flowering you can eat the inside of the stalk and the ‘heart’ at the bottom of the thorny section. It is better boiled as this makes it softer but it is quite tasty to chew on as is. Yes exactly like the cultivated artichoke – as this it it’s forefather.
I was only introduced to artichokes when I met my husband, I never ate them while growing up in England – although he is also British so I guess they must have sold them there. He taught me the very complicated process of eating the tender tip of each leaf after dipping it in vinaigrette, then pulling off the ‘witches hat’ which is the softer leaves at the center, carefully digging out the hairs and finally getting to the finale – the heart. This is eaten mashed up with more vinaigrette and relished all the more by the effort required to reach it.
My first son was a true artichoke expert from a very young age and it became a staple on our Shabbat dinner table every winter when it came into season. Many friends and neighbours have been introduced to it by us over the years.
This blog is dedicated to Woody, my very dear friends dog, who unfortunately has passed away before his prime. We looked after Woody many times over the years and his naive love for everything and everyone was so heartwarming and a lesson to all of us. When walking him in nature he had a tendency to head straight into every muddy puddle and to roll in anything he could find. He would often need a bath on his return and I would return him to his owner smelling much sweeter than when I received him. He will be sorely missed.How to cook and eat the perfect artichoke!
- Trim off the stalks and tops of the leaves, this makes it easier to wash them.
- Rinse between the leaves thoroughly and then put in a pan to soak with lots of salt to draw out any bugs or dirt.
- Put in a pan covered in water and boil on a slow boil for about an hour to an hour and a half, depending on the size of the artichoke. They are ready when the leaves pull out easily.
- Dip the fleshy part of the leaves in your favorite vinaigrette dressing, or into mayonnaise mixed with mustard or just dip in salt.
