You face a choice: eradicate them or enjoy them. My personal choice is to enjoy them. It’s dandelion
that I am talking about. Every spring,
the first flower to bloom in the northern hemisphere seems to be dandelion,
across every lawn north of the 49th parallel, and even well down
into the central USA. Europe, too, has dandelion in abundance.
But dandelions are only noxious weeds because of our
perception of them. In fact, they are
one of the best sources of nourishment of any plant, from flower to root. In the spring, the young dandelion greens
(the tender leaves) are delicious in salads or boiled and buttered, with
thyme. Once the plant starts to produce
flowers, the leaves tend to get a little bitter, but are still edible until the
hot summer sun toughens them up.
Dandelion flowers, though, offer some of the best bounty
available in the spring. Whether you
want to make homemade dandelion wine, dandelion syrup or want just to enjoy the
flowers fresh in a salad or steamed or sautéed, they are delicious.
There are a variety of ways to prepare dandelion
flowers. Begin by picking either fully
flowers or buds that have not yet bloomed, but that are full. When cooking the
flowers, they will close up, in any event, and will shrink by about 80%. Four cups of loosely packed flowers will
render down to about 2/3 of a cup if sautéed, and ¾ to 7/8 cup if steamed. If you choose to boil the flowers, be sure to
save the juice. It makes excellent soup
base or water when making homemade bread (use sage and parsley to kill some of
the bitterness).
To reduce the slightly bitter taste of dandelions, avoid
picking stems (containing a white milk) with the flowers. Also, if you have lots of time, remove the
calyx (the green cup-like shell holding the petals) from the petals. You will need at least five time the amount
of flower petals if you choose to do this, but it is the stalk and green calyx
that hold most of the bitter flavour.
Unfortunately, much of the nutrients also are found in the calyx.
All methods of preparing the flowers for consumption require
that you rinse the flowers under cold water, to remove debris. (If you are squeamish, you will also be
removing any aphids, ants and other insects).
Be sure that you pick flowers in any area that has not been treated with
herbicide or insecticide. Also, any areas where animals may have urinated
(corners, near trees and shrubs, against walls, etc.) should be avoided.
The first method of preparing the flowers is to sautee
them. Dandelion flowers, like the more
mature leaves, can have a slightly bitter taste (reminiscent of tonic
water). Heat two or three tablespoons of grapeseed or olive oil in a
skillet. Add two cups of flowers, recue heat to low, spice with 2 teaspoons of
brown sugar and 1/8 teaspoon of thyme.
Cover the skillet and cook until the flowers are tender. Serve with peas as a companion.
The next method involves steaming. Steam the flowers for about 7-10
minutes. Save the liquid, as much of the
nutrients will have leeched back into the water. Remove the flowers and, in a bowl, toss the
flowers with melted butter and a little corn meal. Add a little hemp or flax oil for a smooth
taste, or use ginger, melted butter and brown sugar for a lighter, sweet taste.
If you wish, you may boil the flowers instead of steaming them.
Dandelion flowers can be eaten raw, as well. The buds, when washed and chilled in vinegar,
make excellent snacks, while the flower petals (or entire flower & calyx)
are great additions to a tossed salad.
Sprinkle sunflower seeds or crushed walnuts on the salad for a great
complimentary taste.
The next blog will deal with making dandelion wine.
