And that would be a yes in size 36 font if I was on the computer writing this post. Only something equally as massive as this vegetable is can be used to describe it.
It is called CARDONE.
To describe it to someone who hasn't seen it, knows it, or seen pictures of it, I like to describe it as looking like a celery stalk on steroids. You don't eat the leaves you just eat the stalks. And these stalks, besides having the same stringy the texture as celery, they uniquely have a scary jagged edge to them which also adds to their odd appearance and why one would ask: you eat these things?
Yes, my friend you do! CARDONE are In the same family as an artichoke. In fact they deliciously taste like the heart of the artichoke. If you are European: Italian French etc. these are no mystery vegetables to you. This is my artichoke plant; see how similar they look:
And if you are an artichoke lover like I am & many others are, you know that the best part is the heart. So you can see why I and thousands of others are like kids in a candy store when we see the cardone.
In addition to similar leaves both plants will grow a lovely purple thistle flower at the top if you allow it to go to flower, something you may never see in my garden.
Traditionally they are found in the markets around Christmas and are a Christmas must-have on Italian tables. Of course they're hard to come by in these parts. Usually for one week in supermarkets that cater to Italians around me, we may be able to find a bunch or two. They are either stared at with fear from afar in the vegetable aisle OR and in my family's case, you grab as many as you can possibly get at one time, throw them all in your cart and run out of the store screaming YES!!!! We got them!!!! And calling, texting multiple family & friends as if you won the sweepstakes. Seriously! I kid you not. FYI: this behavior is very common with a "Psycho Phoodie" as I affectionately like to call us. I have friends who make a trip to Brooklyn around Christmas to the Italian section where they can buy a whole crate of them to bring home. A Foodie Pilgrimage. They freeze well so you can prolong the joy. But more on cooking later.
For the first time ever, I found the seeds this year in my early spring seed buying (from Seeds of Italy of course) and almost screamed when I saw & grabbed the packet in the store. My exuberance was quickly deflated when I found out that like the artichoke, seeds need to be started before January, as they take a long time to grow. Ok, I now have a project for my 2015 vegetable garden.
You can relax your wrinkled in confusion farhead. You are seeing correctly; they are growing in one of my flower beds. I have three plants growing that I found as vegetable starts not long after my disappointment, at my favorite garden center, Wolff's. But I found them in with the perennial flower section NOT in the vegetable section! You can imagine my surprise and outburst when I grabbed three plants which was all they had. One of their friendly staff came up to me to inform me how they're called cardone, are in the artichoke family. And with their massive leaves & lovely purple flower, they make stunning addition to your perennial flower beds. A showstopper one could say. Again I was gushing about this vegetable and had a nice discussion informing her all about the vegetable as she only thought of it as a flower.
I had to plant mine in the flower bed, NOT because it was the new trend but because I had no room in my vegetable garden plot. I already had planted six artichoke plants which can get as large and now I had three more space gobblers, so I decided instead of lavender plants, this summer I would add the CARDONE instead.
Speaking of garden trends, I have been planting vegetables in my flowerbeds since day one of my vegetable garden life. Because of my need to increase my vegetable growing space. I created this new flower bed two years ago and I'm even considering taking out another chunk of a grass area in the sun for more vegetable growing area.
What imakes cardone so sweetly delicious is the fact that before it is eaten it must be blanched or it is beyond bitter!! Unedible in fact and won't even cook if boiled for two hours! Crazy veg, right?
So if you want to grow to eat one, you have to tie up the plant & and wrap to blanch it for six weeks or more. And not harvest till after the frost has hit it. I started wrapping my three plants last week; who knew what a project it be.
Thick twine to wrap tightly and hoping there's no bugs on leaves while you're doing this, as you have to get up close and personal with the plant. Then instead of cardboard like some people suggest to block out the sun, I found it easier to wrap black landscaping fabric around next. And lastly, finishing with brown paper. I got all my supplies from my garden shed and the Dollar Store. Then they must be secured to a pole. Pretty large, bulky & wobbly at this point, so I secured the three plants to my fence also.
A big shout-out to the first person who discovered YES, you CAN EAT THESE THINGS!
**more later on how I cut down, prepare before cooking, and how to eat these "creatures" of course, in a few months.
