Grilled Artichoke in Italian herbs

We've had a great spring season with our CSA.  To me, the best part of our weekly bounty has been the herbs.  I never know what we will get and it's nice to be creative in the kitchen each week.  Of course, you would think I could simply grow herbs myself but I seem to be some sort of green thumb vampire, sucking the life right out of most plants.  So yeah, no growing herbs for me.   O_o

Last week we received an Italian blend in our CSA bag; it included oregano, rosemary, chives and sage.  I made a lovely herb grilled steak for the Hubby and had just enough left for a veggie side dish.  I had picked up some artichokes from the Farmer's Market on Saturday (yes, you CAN grow artichokes in Texas) so I tried my hand at grilling them with an herb oil sauce. DELISH.

Grilled Artichokes in Italian Herbs

• 4-6 small artichokes
• 6 cups water
• 2 Tbs olive oil (melted butter would be good here)
• 2 tsp Italian herb blend - fresh chopped is best
• 1/4 tsp salt
• 1/4 tsp pepper

1. Trim the stems and cut tips off outer layer of artichoke leaves
2. Bring the water to a boil in a large sauce pot over high heat
3. Quarter prepared artichokes and remove the inside thistle part (I wore dish gloves for this part to avoid getting the thistles in my fingers)
4. Add artichokes to boiling water for 5 minutes
5. After 5 minutes, drain artichokes into cold water to stop the cooking process; the artichokes need to be slightly firm for grilling
6. While artichokes are cooling, mix oil, herbs, salt, and pepper in a shallow baking dish
7. Place slightly warm artichokes into the baking dish; toss to coat with oil/herb mixture
8. Let marinate at room temperature for 1 hour 
9. Heat a grill pan or outdoor grill to med-high
10. Place artichokes onto grill and cook for 8-10 minutes turning several times to keep from burning

Allow the artichokes to cool before eating.  You still have to peel off the outer leaves but it is so, so worth the effort!