Diving to the heart of what makes the local gem great
PHOTOGRAPHY BY MARK C. ANDERSON
Tink, in her seven pounds of Yorkshire terrier glory, may not have given off mighty-artichoke-warrior vibes.
But, oh, if you could’ve seen her work. She took her security duties personally.
Tink would stalk the rows of heirloom artichokes in the Castroville fields at Pezzini Farms just off Highway 1, where her wider Pezzini family is now going on its fifth generation of artichoke growers. When she sensed a mouse, her ears would pop up, and she’d bark an alert.
Sometimes she’d bring Kona, the big black German shepherd, to do the heavy digging. Most of the time Tony Pezzini—whose grandpa started growing artichokes at Odello’s Carmel farm in 1929—would accompany her, helping flush out the marauders with a shovel so she could pounce.
“Every day we’d go out, and if I wasn’t out there, she was out there,” he says. “We had a system: I’d get on one side, scare the mice towards her, then she would dig, and take them out. It was amazing.”
The kill tally he kept over months and years eventually reached 3,500. Tink’s record for a single day: 58.
Tink and Tony were inseparable, hence Pezzini’s grief when she died. “It was hard,” he says. “At least I had her in my arms, walking around with her, talking with her…then she got heavy, and she was gone.”
Tink is far from the only star woven into local artichoke lore. Norma Jean, before she changed her name to Marilyn Monroe, famously won the first Artichoke Festival queen crown. More recently, heavy hitters like Bobby Flay, Martha Stewart and Lidia Bastianich have highlighted the farmstand, where The Choke Coach food truck is layered with photos of famous customers like celebrity chef Curtis Stone.
And Tink’s valiant service spotlights the type of heirloom green globe artichokes the Pezzinis choose to grow.
The deep root systems of the perennials variety allow for multiple harvests from one plant, and artichokes that develop thicker and tastier hearts, but also make the plants popular with rodents. (Other growers opt for annual artichokes that are more affordable to grow but yield smaller hearts and one harvest per plant.)
The most important point revealed by Tink’s teamwork is how familial an undertaking this is.
Tony and his son Sean filter out into the fields with their team as early as 5am during spring harvest season. The two hand pack every artichoke they direct ship across the country.
Sean picks every sauce, spice and apron in their wonderland of a farm stand, where his young son is already learning how to work the forklift controls from dad’s lap.
In other words, when it comes to the country’s best artichokes, the area’s most brilliant springtime crop, and the state’s official vegetable, it gets personal.
When it comes to the country’s best artichokes, the area’s most brilliant springtime crop, and the state’s official vegetable, it gets personal.
SPIKING BUSINESS
A hair-netted, face-masked and lab-coated worker slices artichokes in half, with speed. Another whittles away at the leaves of an artichoke, quickly and gracefully taking it down to its heart. Another worker pulls pans of chopped hearts from a steamer and assembles them on a vintage charbroiler. Yet another sorts artichokes from a mountain big enough to fill five hot tubs.
Monterey Farms, tucked on an industrial street in Salinas, is aswirl with activity, a Willy Wonka Artichoke Factory.
Founder, President and Chef Jane Hayes weaves through prep kitchen, nabbing a freshly grilled slice of artichoke heart to taste test.
Then she pauses to point out a brand new product that hits markets mid-year, ArtiQs—a fresh cooked, vacuum-sealed and halved artichoke, ready for a restaurant chef or home cook—and her emotion is audible.
“This has been a dream of mine for 10 years,” she says. “I’ve been able to take this amazingly healthy, unique vegetable and provide real value added.”
Her whole operation proves seductive to a thoughtful eater, and outright orgasmic to an artichoke fan.
Doing everything by hand, she and her team rescue artichokes deemed too flawed to sell whole—because they might look a little iffy from frostbite or have a hole in a leaf—hand-trim them to their hearts and give the leaves to local beef ranchers
whose cows love to munch them.
Then those hearts are steamed, grilled, flavored and tucked in handy packets, ready for a pizza, pasta, salad, frittata or easy snack, without the work—or the mushiness, brine, oils or leaves of typically imported jarred hearts.
A waste stream becomes a prized product, and one whose simple freshness and flavor speaks to the thought that went into it.
“When cooked properly, our fresh artichoke hearts add an element of richness and complexity to a meal not found anywhere else,” Hayes says. “I have vegetarian customers tell me that our artichoke hearts are a delicious substitute for meat.”
FACTS AND FLAVORS
Artichokes are flower buds, pre-blossom, and a member of the daisy family. (Hayes, in fact, has trademarked “The Incredible Edible Flower” for her line of prepped ’chokes.)
When they’re fresh, an artichoke squeeze will result in a rubbery squeak, so shop accordingly. (Sean Pezzini also coaches buyers to look for longer, thicker, stronger stems, as those tell you more about the heart meat inside.)
Artichokes are one of the oldest cultivated vegetables, originating from the Mediterranean region around 3,000 years ago, include scores of various varieties, and are high in fiber, antioxidants and cynarin, which enhances liver function and aids digestion.
But while there is a bumper crop of fun artichoke facts out there—surprise, Egypt produces the most!—there are even more ways to enjoy eating them.
While the cooking demos, live music and Agro Art have their merits too, that versatility has long been the major draw of the Artichoke Festival, happening June 14–15, 2025, at the Sheriff’s Posse Grounds in Salinas.
A partial list of potential preparations includes fried, sautéed, grilled, marinated, pickled, thin-sliced carpaccio style, and starring in (and on) soups, sandwiches, risottos, quiches, hummus, pizza, bruschetta, ice cream and cupcakes.
The delicious thistle’s culinary map found fresh expression last year when Monterey County Convention & Visitors Bureau debuted The Artichoke Trail, which lists 40 different restaurants, stores, attractions, bars and farm stands dedicated to the Cynara cardunculus.
The guide works as culinary inspiration and flavor invitation. Chocolate in downtown Santa Cruz, for instance, does handrolled pasta in an artichoke cream sauce and a “sizzling” pot of artichoke hearts, melted Asiago plus ricotta cheeses and white wine.
Flaherty’s Seafood Grill & Oyster Bar crafts a crab and fire-roasted artichoke quesadilla.
And the likes of Cella restaurant and Pearl Hour, both in Monterey, do clever cocktails with artichoke amaro.
Pezzini Farms’ Farm Stand appears on the list, with its artichoke cupcake center stage. The dessert works as a tiny taste of the vast inventory curated to feature thoroughly local products, an Artichoke-Festival-unto itself, with artichoke drizzles, artichoke bruschetta, artichoke pasta sauces, artichoke aioli, and boxes and boxes of fresh heirloom artichokes.
It’s at the Farm Stand that a fifth-generation Pezzini can occasionally be found running the register with help from Mary Aleman, farm stand manager and Castroville’s unofficial mayor.
Though he just turned four, the kid’s clearly got a knack for the business. It runs in the family, sure, but this artichoke part of the area’s flavor profile only works because Luca, like his parents, grandparents and great grandparents, takes a personal interest.
About the author
Mark C. Anderson, EMB's managing editor and "Found Treasures" columnist, welcomes responsible and irresponsible feedback. Correspond via mark@ediblemontereybay.com.
