Artichokes in Turkish Food Culture
Artichoke is a vegetable known and widely used since the ancient times. Legend has it that the god Zeus fell in love with the mortal beauty Cynara, who lived on the island of Zinari and went to visit her brother Poseidon, the god of the sea. Zeus then made her a goddess, and they began to live together on Olympus, the mountain of the Gods. However, Cynara missed her family after a while and went to them in secret. Enraged by this, Zeus surrounded Cynara's heart with thorny leaves and turned it into an artichoke. Then, he threw it down from Olympus into the world.
Artichoke, which adorned the tables of kings and nobles, has also come to the fore with its therapeutic properties since the ancient times. Known as the liver's best friend, it lowers cholesterol, facilitates digestion, and protects against cardiovascular diseases.