Milk thistle heads

Silybum marianum

vegetable

Young flower heads cooked like little artichokes, and leaf ribs peeled like cardoon.

Origin

Mediterranean

Where to find it

It overruns waste ground, roadsides and rubble, from southern France to Sicily and the Maghreb; choose heads that are still tight, before the spines harden.

Season (United States)

May to July

Preparation

Spines removed with a knife before cooking.

Molecules

In small amounts, not counted Insoluble fibers

Did you know?

Its white-marbled leaves were stained, legend says, by the Virgin's milk.