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Dandelions often get an unfair rap. Yes, they multiply faster than a den of
fertile rabbits, but for a short time they are happy and yellow and they provide nutritional advantages. They were
originally brought to North America in the 17th century for use as a food item. Ralph Waldo Emerson even went so far as
to say they were "a plant whose virtues have not yet been discovered."The leaves are the part of the plant that offer a punch of vitamins and minerals. They taste best when picked from a young plant before the buds and flowers appear and make them more bitter to the palate. Some grocery stores carry cultivated dandelions or you can pick them from your own yard, just take care to avoid any that have been sprayed with pesticides. Following is a tasty salad recipe for dandelion greens.
Dandelion Salad
4 c. chopped dandelion leaves
3 hard-cooked eggs
3 slices bacon
Dressing:
1 1/2 Tbsp. flour
1 tsp. salt
1 egg
2 Tbsp. sugar
1/4 c. vinegar
2 c. milk or water
Wash and chop dandelion leaves. Fry bacon until crisp, then crumble. Remove bacon from drippings.
Dressing:
Mix together flour and salt; add egg, vinegar and water. Stir until blended.
Add to bacon drippings in pan and cook until thickened. Cool slightly.
Pour dressing over dandelion leaves and mix lightly. Garnish with sliced or chopped hard-boiled eggs and crisp bacon pieces.
Serve immediately.
Makes 6 servings.
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5-03-2006 @4:12PM Art Copeland said... Chewy but great taste with plian old oil & vinegar
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5-03-2006 @4:31PM Kris said... Other dandelion uses (root)
Dandelion leaves and root are commonly recommended as a food supplement for pregnant and postmenopausal women because of the numerous nutrients they contain. This plant produces a mild diuretic effect and reduces serum cholesterol levels. Dandelion root is used to improve appetite and minor digestive problems. Some modern naturopathic physicians believe that it can help detoxify the liver and gallbladder. It shows proven value as a diuretic, flushing excess water from the body. It is believed by many experts to promote the flow of bile and stimulates the appetite. Dandelion juice once was quite popular as a diuretic, laxative, and remedy for rheumatism.
Dandelion is considered a remedy for the following conditions:
Appetite loss
Indigestion
Kidney and bladder stones
Liver and gallbladder problems
Urinary tract infections
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5-03-2006 @8:38PM Camille Bauman said... I grew up eating dandelion greens in salads. My mother would smash a boiled potato in with the greens to offset any bitterness. She also made dandelion wine every summer.
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5-03-2006 @9:38PM Huffy said... My favorite local farmers' market offers "regular" as well as red-stemmed dandelion greens, both of which I buy frequently. Bacon seems to have an affinity for dandelion, and I love to make BDTs in tomato season: bacon, dandelion green and tomato sandwich. Heaven between two slices of bread.
Huffy
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5-05-2006 @12:13PM TINA said... I grew up picking and eating dandelion. My favorite to this day is called shegodia and egg, not sure how to spell it but my Mom cooks it with egg like a quiche, we usually only have it on holidays now, but still my favorite.
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5-08-2006 @8:09PM kathy said... My grandmother had a recipe for dandilion flowers dipped in egg rolled in flower, then deep fried. Also, i have had dandilion greens boiled like spinach, and served with a little vinegar. Very tastey indeed. I think peopl dont bother picking "natural" foods. Like dandilions anymore. We use to pick a water plant we called cow slips, every spring. It too tasted like spinach. And was very tastey. But i think people feel "poor" picking these types of foods. I think it is wise, and frugal.
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5-08-2006 @8:12PM Cat said... At this tiny place in Chinatown they tempura fry dandelion greens. Unhealthy? Yes. Tasty? Definitely.
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5-08-2006 @8:30PM Dr. Dave Cash said... There is another great recipe for dandelions:
Dandelion Tea!!
Pick a 1 qt container full of dandelion blooms
(only the yellow flower, no greens)
Drop them into a gallon of boiling water and let steep for 30 minutes. Remove blossoms. Add the juice of 4 lemons and two cups of sugar. Chill and serve. WOW!!
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5-08-2006 @8:37PM arvee said... it is spelled cicoria
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5-08-2006 @8:54PM Betty T. said... My mom used to fix the dandelion salad with the greens, it was always my job to pick them every spring as soon as they appeared out of the ground. This little weed was used in mighty ways, Our favorite way to fix them was to put them in a bowl and mix the egg and bacon crushed and then to pour hot olive oil with salt and pepper over everything. It was great. My mom lived to be 91, my aunt lived to be 106, my uncle lived to be 93, that was their tonic each and every spring as long as they were able to get it.
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5-08-2006 @8:54PM Kicia said... This is a really cool subject!Something for the Hippie,Free-spirit or plain old Dandelion lover in all of us! Does anyone else have an interesting recipe for Dandelion anything? If so,please share!
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5-08-2006 @9:08PM Kermit said... Besides the great healthful benefits of dandelion and the many tasty dishes you can make from the greens, the roots of the plant make an amazing coffee substitute. Gather the swollen roots at the end of the season, wash and remove tiny rootlets. Cut the roots into 1-inch pieces and roast in a slow oven until they turn coffee color - about 2 hours. Grind and use as a 100% substitute for real coffee. You have to be a real coffee expert to tell the difference, and it has no caffeine.
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5-08-2006 @9:08PM Kermit said... Besides the great healthful benefits of dandelion and the many tasty dishes you can make from the greens, the roots of the plant make an amazing coffee substitute. Gather the swollen roots at the end of the season, wash and remove tiny rootlets. Cut the roots into 1-inch pieces and roast in a slow oven until they turn coffee color - about 2 hours. Grind and use as a 100% substitute for real coffee. You have to be a real coffee expert to tell the difference, and it has no caffeine.
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5-08-2006 @9:37PM Vicki said... I heard eating the yellow part of the flower was poisonous but I always hear stories about my grandma making the best dandelion greens with bacon [including the grease] and boiled eggs, but you had to be careful cuz if you didn't cook it through well it could make you sick. Not sure if thats true. I might try this recipe, I've been wondering how it really tastes. Lord knows how many times I've heard about it LOL ^_^
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5-08-2006 @9:41PM Annie McHendrix said... I have a little Blue Dutch Bunny named Bennie (she's a female)that I had spayed and even with antibiotics she had bladder infection and was given all the antibiotics she could have and still had bladder infection. I did some research and found that Dandelion greens were good at getting rid of bladder infection as well as kidney problems in animals as well as humans. She is doing great now. She loves Dandelion greens.
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5-08-2006 @10:02PM mary ann said... My mom used to cook dandelions in a skillet, seasoned with bacon grease (unheard of now in our "healthfood days"), and serve it with cornbread and sliced tomatoes. I can still taste it. It was so delicious. Mom lived to be 98, eating that, bacon
and eggs and homemade biscuits; and lots of great northern beans, seasoned with bacon. Oh, those delicious, light biscuits she made. Her chicken and dumplings (the rolled out kind) was a prize-winning meal always. I miss you, Mom... and not just for your
superb southern cooking....
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5-08-2006 @10:07PM Foster Beall said... My Grandmother, on my mother's side picked the first leaves of Spring and made a water, bacon, vinegar dressing to go over them. As a child I turned my nose up at the salad. Years later, I tasted a wilted leaf lettuce salad that seemed to have the same dressing on it. I loved it. The area I am from is South Eastern Ohio. Anyone out there have that recipe for wilted leaf lettuce salad?
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5-08-2006 @10:11PM Debra said... I grew up in Long Island in the 60's and I would help my Mom pick Dandelion from the back yard!! Wow... this brought back great memories. I remember eating it and liking it.
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5-08-2006 @10:14PM marilyn said... I have been making a Dandelion omlet for years ..If it were to sell I would have to charge at least $15.00 for a small portion because of the work involved in cleaning, preparing & cooking it ...
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5-08-2006 @10:17PM Charles Pelton said... The flowers of the dandelion make a very sweet and delightful wine. The petals are the only part used to make a light colored wine. I donot have the recipe but I can get it if you have further interest.
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