DIP IT, BAKE IT, SPREAD IT: There's no denying that videos depicting puppies tumbling through flowery fields and kittens playing with tangly yarn capture our online affections. We'll hit "replay" again and again, thank you very much, and we're not even going to bother hashtagging "no regrets" when we do so. But adorable animal videos may have an unlikely challenger, one that comes straight from the thistle family and your local produce aisle: the artichoke. While just about every foodstuff that can be cooked/chopped/blended boasts oodles of video explanation, artichokes, being a tad unusual, have a way of regularly popping up on our feeds.
A PLETHORA OF RECIPES, how to get to the heart in a semi-neat fashion, and ways to douse the chokie in Parmesan are just some of the do-it-at-home videos in which artichokes currently reign. They also, of course, reign offline, and very much so in the town that's the celebrated Artichoke Capital of the World. Tuck in your oil/mayo-catching bib and prepare to make tracks for the...
CASTROVILLE ARTICHOKE FOOD & WINE FESTIVAL, which is actually happening at the capacious Monterey County Fair and Event Center. The 57th outing of the world-famous Artichoke Festival spreads out, like so many pointy green leaves, over the first weekend in June, with chef demos, artichoke field tours, and a host of ways to savor the globular green gem. It isn't all about the dippable delight, of course; a car show, art enjoyment, and live tunes are also part of the festivity. Can you never get enough of this thistle-awesome favorite? Does your videos-watched log reveal your artichoke obsession? Clearly you need to indulge in some leafy love on June 4 and 5, 2016.
