Artichokes grow abundantly in Sicily, especially in the North-West part of the Island. The artichokes are perennial plants and usually, they deliver a crop in late summer and one in late autumn. The artichokes were called kinara by the Greeks and cynara by the Romans until the Arab invasion of Sicily, when the name was changed to al kharshuf, in Italian il carciofo. In the United States, artichokes are mostly cultivated in California and around the city of Castroville. There are vast plantations of this vegetable so big that they stretch from one side of the horizon to the opposite side, with such a huge production that they are able to supply the American markets and the processing plants all year around.

The varieties of the artichokes are set by the wet or dry weather, by the humidity and by the intensity of the clouds. The Verdi di Palermo, a variety of pointed shaped artichoke, with hard thorns and tender edible parts, is widely grown in Sicily and they are harvested in late autumn. Verdi Liguri, Toscani and Veneti are varieties related to the Verdi Palermo and grown respectively in Liguria, Tuscany and in the Venetian fields. Round shaped artichokes called domestichi are harvested in late spring and in Sicily, they are the preferred quality by the housewives. In late spring the mammole globe shaped artichokes are harvested in the area of Catania. They are tender, light in color and pulpy. The romaneschi is another well-known variety with similar characteristics and grown around Rome.

The climate in the Central Coast of California, around Castroville makes it possible for us to enjoy the round tender and pulpy artichokes in the spring and the conical shaped, purplish flower of the chokes in autumn and winter. Artichokes are very versatile, perfect for a snack, a side dish, to make stuffed, to barbecue or to fry, cook in a thousand ways or to simple boil and eat the leaves one at a time by holding the base between your teeth and pulling the leaf out, scrapping the leaf with your teeth and eating the pulpy part. The edible part of the leaves can be eaten plain or dipped in olive oil mixed with vinegar, salt and pepper. Boiled artichokes are the easiest way to cook them: simple, effortless and delicious.

Generally, all cooks use the same basic ingredients but by adding a different component, mostly abundant in the area, it can transform and enhance the taste of the artichokes to make a difference from the town just a few miles away. In Sicily, there are many ways to cook artichokes. Every town, small or big has recipes or way of cooking them to make this popular vegetable a tasty, delicious and nutritious treat. They are dipped in various kinds of batters or simply lightly coated with flour and fried. They are sautéed, stewed, made in a frittata or as a condiment for a pasta dish and also in a very favorite and successful way, they are stuffed with various and different fillings. Artichokes can also be roasted, barbecued, baked, fried, in a salad or attuppati, covered with a mixture of breadcrumbs, eggs, herbs, pinoli, raisins and cooked in a light tomato sauce.

At Joe’s of Avenue U, our Sicilian eatery, La Focacceria Palermitana on Avenue U Brooklyn, NY, most of the time we cooked the artichokes with a stuffing made of breadcrumbs, cheese, herbs, spices and salted anchovies or just with parsley and garlic; at times we baked them alla viddanedda, country style or sautéed with garlic to serve as a side dish, or as a condiment for a pasta dish or to make a delicious frittata. 

Artichokes have good taste and can be prepared in advance and heated in the oven at the last minute, to compliment a simple dinner or a sumptuous banquet. In Sicily there are many ways to cook artichokes. Mainly all cooks use the same basic ingredients but by adding a different component, mostly abundant in their own area, it can transform and enhance the taste to make a difference from town to town, just a few miles away.

All over Sicily the artichokes are boiled and eaten dipped in olive oil and vinegar; also they are dipped in various kinds of batters or simply lightly coated with flour and fried. They are sautéed, stewed, made in a frittata or as a condiment for a pasta dish and stuffed in many ways. In the province of Messina, artichokes are stuffed with cured meat; in other towns, the almonds and capers are the main ingredients for the stuffing, and artichokes roasted in the open fire, with garlic and oil are very popular in other parts of Sicily. In the province of Agrigento, they make artichoke incanalati- stuffed with parsley, garlic, drizzled with olive oil and baked in an open fire between two Spanish tiles and covering the top tile with burning charcoal. In Enna, the garlic is mixed with onions and pecorino, without breadcrumbs. In Trapani, the anchovies and the capers are present in many preparations and always in the stuffed artichokes. In Palermo, the artichokes are made stuffed, sautéed, fried, baked alla viddanedda country style, or “attuppati”, -otturati- meaning closed up and with a stuffing made of a mixture of eggs breadcrumbs, herbs, pinoli, raisins, meat, garlic, sautéed and stewed in a light tomato sauce. Preparing the artichokes for cooking may appear like a complicated and boring accomplishment, on the contrary, it is easy and can get done in little time. Usually, one artichoke is served for each person, but you can prepare a few extra, they are delicious the next day but rarely there are any left over!