So, tonight, I had an incredible leg of lamb dinner with my super fantabulous neighbors/friends.  The lamb was stuffed chock full of garlic cloves, and cooked on the grill.  Mmmmmmm!!!  Tastey!

Here’s where it got weird.  Weird for me anyway.  There was a HUGE, and very whole, artichoke on my plate. 

Me:  “Um, how do I eat this?” 

Laura:  “You’ve never had artichoke before??!!” 

Me:  “Yes, of course I have.  I’ve just never had a WHOLE artichoke before.” 

Laura:  “Well, how have you had them?” 

Me:  “You know, in dips, sliced up in salads, anti-pasta…” 

Laura: “Oh, that’s just the hearts.” 

Me:  “Ya, that’s right.” 

Laura:  “Ok, well, here’s what you do…” 

And then I got a lesson on how to eat a whole artichoke.  Piece of cake!  And, totally, awesomely, perfectly cooked, just like everything else she makes!!  HOWEVER, the outside leaves are the super easy part for a first-time artichoke eater. 

Next comes the lesson on how to remove the “hair”.  DUDE!!!  My artichoke is hairy??!!!  What the heck?!  That was just the most odd thing.  Hair on an artichoke.  Who knew?!  I quite obviously did not.

So, I survived my first time eating a whole artichoke.  It’s a bit of work, but very tastey.  I will definitely do it again!  Heck, I may even try cooking it myself!!!