The part of the artichoke that is the heart is the meaty core of the artichoke.
The reason it's called an artichoke heart is because it looks kinda like a heart and also if you ate the middle part of the artichoke heart plant you would choke.
Artichokes are actually the bud of a thistle—a flower. The leaves (called “bracts”) cover a fuzzy center called the “choke”, which sits on top of a meaty core, called the “heart”. The heart is completely edible.
The artichoke originated from the Mediterranean.
Artichokes are the edible flower bud of a thistle plant in the sunflower family and in fact, if left to develop, the artichoke will blossom into an extraordinary, spiky, brilliant purple flower.
Artichokes are also one of the oldest known foods, dating to antiquity.
Ancient Greeks and Romans are the ones that first ate artichokes and considered the artichokes to be a delicacy.
Also Catherine de Medici is said to have brought artichokes to France in the 16th century when she arrived from Florence at the age of fourteen to marry the future Henry II.
You cannot and should not ever eat an artichoke after it flowers.
Before the artichoke flowers the artichoke is edible and can be eaten.
However once the artichoke flowers then the artichoke becomes inedible and can be poisonous and make you sick or even kill you if eaten.
Once the artichoke flowers it's no longer safe to eat but makes for a pretty flower.
The part of the artichoke that you cannot eat is the choke of the artichoke.
The choke of the artichoke is not edible and is a fuzzy hairy looking part of the artichoke and should be cut off, removed and thrown away.
The rest of the artichoke is edible and safe to eat.
When boiled the artichokes are actually pretty tasty at least to me and most people.
Your tastes may vary and you may or may not like the artichokes.
When you boil the artichokes the artichokes tend to have a mild flavor and the flavor of boiled artichokes is similar to asparagus.
If you've eaten asparagus then the artichokes will taste somewhat similar to the asparagus.
Artichokes are grown and produced worldwide.
However most artichokes come from France Italy.
The USA also grows and produces a lot of artichokes so if you're in the USA then you will likely be eating Artichokes that have come from the USA.
But you might also have Artichokes that came from France Italy or other countries.
Most of the artichokes though come from France, Italy, and Spain, while California provides nearly 100 percent of the United States crop.
So if you're in the USA the Artichokes are mostly from California and they are shipped all over the United States.