Perhaps braising cardoons in cream would be delicious (but then again, braising asphalt in cream might be too, if you can simmer long enough for it to get tender), but I wasn't impressed with the flavor of merely boiled cardoons.
I was told you could treat them like artichokes: 1/2 hour in acidulated, salted water, dip in butter. I made a quick bagna cauda (warning: don't microwave without a cover), and still they were unipressive: bland, a little stringy.
Most of the recipes I see online braise them in a bechamel.
What is patriotism, but the love of good things we ate in our childhood?
-- Lin Yutang