Cut off the heads and stick into sand,

Having been inspired by my friend Andrew Simpson’s blog, https://chorltonhistory.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-way-we-ate-in-april-1947.html?fbclid=IwAR264sxePNI-eVTQBmoZhB1Kt05bym5b08S99A_ZG1E12hxm4gfDK-kuifw I wrote about artichokes yesterday; artichokes as a vegetable grown in gardens at home or on allotments or in vegetable patches. I wrote about the different varieties which might be grown, globe and root, as described by Richard Sudell, pre-war in his best-selling book ‘Practical Gardening and Food Production’.

Andrew mentioned some 1947 recipes, and I’ve been looking in my little 1944 recipe book, ‘Cookery To-day and To-morrow, and found several recipes which gardeners could use to cook the produce of their gardens or allotments or vegetable patches. This handy little book gives advice on cooking time (15-20 mins, which would be for Jerusalem artichokes I guess, but it doesn’t specify) and storing –

• Artichoke, Globe: cut off the heads and stick the long stalk into sand, store away from frost. Cut a piece off the stalk every day
• Artichokes, Jerusalem – store as potatoes or leave in the ground

And cooking –

• Artichoke Globe: a globe artichoke should be well soaked in water, to which a little salt and vinegar has been added, and then placed head downwards in boiling water, and boiled till the leaves part from the core. It should then be drained and served with melted butter, which will be much improved by the addition of a little lemon juice or tarragon vinegar.
• Artichoke, Japanese (I guess this is the same as the Chinese artichoke Richard Sudell describes) : this is generally cooked and served with sauce, or eaten cold with cream and grated cheese.
• Artichoke, Jerusalem: wash, peel and shape the artichokes and drop them at once into salt and water to prevent discolouration. Young artichokes should take about 20 minutes to cook in boiling salted water, but old ones should be put into cold water and brought very slowly to the boil and simmered till tender. Artichokes may be served with a little margarine and well basted until they are browned. They may also be served cold with French dressing.