Happy Thursday! I hope you’re having a glorious week. I’ve been trying to unwind – and catch up on sleep – from a busy weekend of graduation events and work.

Some dear patrons of The Good Egg who come to see me every weekend told me recently that they made grilled artichokes. I have never actually cooked artichokes before so I was intrigued. I looked at some tutorials online and just decided to go simple with seasonings and stick to some fresh citrus, olive oil and salt & pepper and grated parm reggiano cheese.

I was basically licking the leaves wishing for more artichoke. They were fabulous.

I thought I’d share with you the steps for making them. I didn’t know there were so many things to do to prepare them. It was well worth the effort, though.

First, I cut the stems off, then cut the top 1/4 of the artichoke. Was tougher than I thought!

Then, I cut the artichokes in half and snipped off the sharp points on the leaves with scissors. Those things can really poke. I put the halves in cold water with juice of one lime.

I let them soak while I brought a large pot of water to a boil. Cook them for 10 minutes.

They smelled amazing already! After they were done, I brushed both sides with a mixture of juice from three limes (lemons will also work), olive oil, salt & pepper and a little garlic powder. I saved the leftover sauce for dipping.

Then, we got to grilling! It was our anniversary dinner so we also paired the artichokes with grilled zucchini (from our garden), grilled shrimp (seasoned by the boy), salad, a spinach/tomato flavored couscous and a little crusty french bread.

Grill each side for about 4 minutes, and try not to drool. Wine and snacks while waiting.

I grated some parmesan reggiano cheese on top of the artichokes because I saw the cutest mini-cheese and couldn’t resist buying it! Adorbs.

And the finished plate.

We ate outside and just chatted. It was such a fun night. AND I got the most amazing present: The Game of Thrones book series!!!!! Yes, I’m a fantasy book geek.

Have a great rest of your day! I’m off to do the Third Thursday Adventure Run with my running buddy, Stacey! If you’re in the Phoenix area, I’d highly recommend this super fun and free (!!) event. Plus, you get a free beer at the end. Runners love their beer.