Do I eat the whole thing?!

When you first lay your eyes on the artichoke, you have no idea where to start. How much can I eat? How should I prepare it? Will it even taste good?

Even for me, this was a brand new experience and a big challenge. Luckily, once you start with the preparation, it's not that hard.

Step 1: Remove the outer leaves and cut the stem to about 2 cm length.

Step 2: Cut off the first third of the artichoke.

Step 3: Steam the artichoke with the stem facing upwards. When a sharp knife cuts into the stem easily, the artichoke is cooked.

The artichoke now has a slightly darker green colour and is soft.

Step 4: Peel away the outer petals until you reach the inner lightly coloured part. There will be a small edible part on the edge that was attached to the centre. You can 'scrape' this with your teeth - some people like to dip this part in a bit of olive oil and lemon juice.

Step 5: Open up the artichoke until you reach the hairy part.

Step 6: Remove the centre choke, the hairy part, with a sharp spoon.

Step 7: You have reached the inner, edible part - well done! :-)

You can flavour it with olive oil, lemon juice, balsamic vinegar, pepper and eat it just as it is. Otherwise, look out for a recipe or 2 tomorrow.

This is definitely a challenge to open and prepare, but once you've got the hang of it, the eating is the best part!