Produce Briefs...
Radicchio
Cooking radicchio brings out the vegetable's natural sweetness but it can also be served fresh. Grill radicchio halves and combine with cooked white beans and balsamic vinaigrette.
Fresh Green Garlic
Grown in California, regarded as a spring delicacy, fresh green garlic are very young garlic before they begin to form bulbils or cloves.
Grower
Seasons/Availability
California-grown baby purple artichokes are available year round.
Description/Taste
The two-inch-wide tulip-shaped fiesole artichoke has a fruity flavor and a deep wine color that does not fade with cooking. Bred from the violetta de provence, a purple variety native to southern France, the fiesole has a comparatively tender and edible. Virtually chokeless, the fiesole artichoke yields little waste. It has the most intense flavor of all baby artichoke varieties.
Applications
Requiring much less preparation than their large counterparts, baby purple artichokes usually do not have a fuzzy choke and have fewer outer leaves. When slow-cooked, such as roasting, braising and poaching, artichokes become tender, more flavorful and they absorb the savory flavors around them most optimally.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
Fiesole artichokes owe their name to the city of Fiesole, Italy, a town located in the scenic hills above Florence.
Geography/History
Artichokes were first cultivated in the Mediterranean basin thousands of years ago, artichokes were brought to America by Italian immigrants and transplanted in the coastal region of Northern California, where today, 99% of all artichokes in the U.S. are grown.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Baby Purple Artichokes. One
is easiest, three is harder.
| Life's A Choke Farms |
Seasons/Availability
California-grown baby purple artichokes are available year round.
Description/Taste
The two-inch-wide tulip-shaped fiesole artichoke has a fruity flavor and a deep wine color that does not fade with cooking. Bred from the violetta de provence, a purple variety native to southern France, the fiesole has a comparatively tender and edible. Virtually chokeless, the fiesole artichoke yields little waste. It has the most intense flavor of all baby artichoke varieties.
Applications
Requiring much less preparation than their large counterparts, baby purple artichokes usually do not have a fuzzy choke and have fewer outer leaves. When slow-cooked, such as roasting, braising and poaching, artichokes become tender, more flavorful and they absorb the savory flavors around them most optimally.
Ethnic/Cultural Info
Fiesole artichokes owe their name to the city of Fiesole, Italy, a town located in the scenic hills above Florence.
Geography/History
Artichokes were first cultivated in the Mediterranean basin thousands of years ago, artichokes were brought to America by Italian immigrants and transplanted in the coastal region of Northern California, where today, 99% of all artichokes in the U.S. are grown.
Recipe Ideas
Recipes that include Baby Purple Artichokes. One
is easiest, three is harder.
