• Fill a large stockpot with 2" of water. Add salt, lemon juice, garlic, and bay leaf. Insert a steamer basket, and make sure water level is below the basket.
• Cover the pan and bring water to a boil. Reduce the heat to low and allow water to simmer while working on artichoke prep.
• Meanwhile, trim the artichokes. If the stem is long, trim it to approximately 1/2". Slice the tip end off artichokes. Wash under warm water.
• There are little barbs on the tip of each leaf. I trim these off with scissors.
• It only takes a couple of minutes for each one, and they look and feel so much better.
• Place artichokes into a steamer basket and cover. Cook on medium heat for approximately 30 minutes. Cook until outer leaves can easily be pulled off.
• To eat, remove each leaf and dip the fleshy end into the sauce. Many people use a mayo-type sauce. You could use my Easy Low-fat Mayo with balsamic vinegar mixture. We love my Asian Sauce that is included here.
• Tightly grip the other end of the leaf. Place in mouth and pull through teeth to remove soft, fleshy portion. Discard remaining leaf.
• Continue until all leaves are removed. As you get close to the center it will look purplish. See my photos above.
• The center of the artichoke will look like this fuzzy thing. It's called the choke, and if you try to eat it, you will.
• Use a knife or spoon to scrape the fuzzy part away. The remaining bottom of the artichoke is the heart. Cut into pieces and dip into sauce to eat.

Asian Sauce

• Whisk all sauce ingredients together in a medium bowl. Adjust ingredients to your taste. If using cornstarch, heat to activate thickening.