Cooking with DANDELIONS ... does anyone have some RECIPES TO SHARE?

we used to make dandelion wine when i was a kid, but i don't have a clue as to how it is done/.

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Here is a Dandelion Wine recipe from the same site I found the other two ... "Mountain Breeze Dandelion Recipes"

Dandelion Wine

1 qt. dandelion blossoms
1 gal. hot water
3 1/2 lb. sugar
2 lemons, cut up
2 oranges, cut up

Pour hot water over dandelion blossoms.
Let stand for 24 hours.
Strain in a jelly bag.
Heat juice again and add sugar, lemons and oranges.
Reheat, then put in a stone jar.
Let ferment.

Skim everyday for 6 or 7 weeks. Then bottle.

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I was hoping to find some glp friends who have actully used dandelions in cooking, and what their experience has been ...


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You don't cook 'with' dandelions...

You COOK dandelion greens, and eat them like any other green (ie spinach, chard, collards, beet greens, etc.)...

Dandelion salad -take the stems (uncooked) and mix them up with bacon pieces and hard boiled eggs. Add a sweet and sour dressing, sorta like the dressing you would use on a spinach salad.

if you mix in boiled potatoes with that you have "dutch lettuce" a traditional recipe

we would pick the flowers, dip them in egg and milk, roll them in crackers, and fry them, taste like oysters. eat the baby greens like salad

i think you can dry the roots and make a coffee/tea flavored drink

Dandelion root is the cleansing part actually.

hey thanks for that recipe !!

that's what i remember, the fermentation, but not the skimming. problably makes a clearer wine, with less crud floating around.

Awsome.

I have an uncle who makes dandelion wine. I will get that from him soon!

The only part of the Dandelion that should NOT be consumed is the stem - it has toxic latex in it, I believe you mean the leaves here,

Also, leaves that are eaten fresh should be picked before the flower forms,,,or it will be too bitter, For most Northern climates that means before May, After that the greens can be picked and dried for tea,

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Here's a "Dandelion Fritter" recipe I found on the net ...


Dandelion Fritter Recipe
by Kimberly Gallagher

This time of year, one of my favorite activities is making and eating dandelion flower fritters. The simple dandelion is one of our family’s favorite herbs. Did I just say herb in reference to dandelion (Taraxacum officinale)? Yep! This plant is tenacious, despite many folk’s best efforts to eradicate her from their lawns, and thankfully so since she has so much to offer. But, I was going to tell you about fritters.

· First of all I love gathering the dandelion flowers – just the tops for fritters. They are easy to pick and so bright and cheery on a sunny day. ...

· Bring your basket of flowers inside, find a bowl, and mix together one egg and one cup of milk.
Stir in a cup of flour and your fritter batter is ready to go. (If you like your fritters sweet you can add a little maple syrup or honey.)

· Now, prepare a skillet on the stove with gently warmed olive oil – keep it over medium heat.

· Take one of the flowers and hold it by the greens at the base of the flower petals. Dip the petals into the batter and twirl until the flower is covered.

· Drop it into the skillet, flower side down. Continue dipping and dropping flowers, checking the first ones every once in a while to see if they are brown. When they’ve lightly browned, flip them over and brown them on the other side.

· When they’re brown on both sides remove them from the skillet and drain the excess oil on paper towel.

· For a sweet treat, drizzle them with maple syrup, honey, jam, or powdered sugar. For savory fritters try dipping in mustard or adding some savory herbs to the batter.

A second method for fritter making is to pull the dandelion flower petals from the green base and add the petals to the batter. Then you can cook them up just like pancakes.

Not only are the fritters delicious, the dandelion flowers are good for your heart.
Dandelion flower tea can help relieve pain from headaches, menstrual cramps, backaches, stomachaches and depression.

The rest of the plant (greens and roots) has nourishing, healing properties as well. ...

(The above from "Kimberly Gallagher")

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dandelion enema:

grind up 3 cups dandelions in a blender until mush...

Many, many recipes at "dandelion recipes Cooks dot com" ...

Here's one for tea:

CLOVE - DANDELION TEA

This tea drunk every night at bedtime is a gentle sedative and is helpful in getting to sleep.

Infuse 1 tablespoon red clover and 1 tablespoon dandelion leaves in 1 cup of boiling water for 5 minutes. Strain and drink.

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Last Edited by Aquarius 7 on 04/21/2009 10:27 PM

Great thread, OP, and timely 'cause baby dandelions are coming up all over!

Dandelion root is an important liver-healing medicinal, which is why dome people refer to it as "cleansing". So is dandelion in general. Asians eat dandelion as a mainstream food. In the Korean supermarkets I shop in you can buy dandelion greens year round and they have large-leaf domestcated varieties.

I have a ton of dandelion recipes at home in the Asian cooking, wild foods and herbal medicine sections of my library. I hope I can remember this thread & get a few minutes to come back & post them.

Great thread, thanks for posting!

Great dessert/breakfast uses. Wonder how they would taste crisp-fried without all that batter?

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Only one way to find out ... do some experimenting!
Let us know the results.

And thanks AsperGirl for bumping this thread. :)

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Last year I has the curiosity to uproot some and has a tea from those roots. Tastes as spinach water. Not great vitamin neutral taste. I have doubts as to eat the entire thing. Although roots probably have least diuretic effect than heads or leaves. The roots heal a liver more.

Interesting thread.

I'm a big fan of herbal medicine.

Yes, Dandelion is one the herbs that are good for the digestive system.

It's often used with Milk Thistle which is the best liver tonic known.

Unfortunately, big pharma doesn't like you to have freedom of choice when it comes to how you take care of your own personal health.

It's not that it's some grand hidden conspiracy, it's just that the industry has gotten too big for their own heads in the last ten years or so as evidenced by all the prescription med ads we're bombarded with all the time.

Those popular meds such as for digestive problems, cholesterol, and depression only mask symptoms and don't really treat the problem.

Look for even more government restrictions on the supplement industry now that the Dems are in power.

As a conservative, I'm for individual choice not the government regulating every part of my life "for my own good".

Roast Dandelion with pork.

Ingredients:
100 dandelions
1 dead pig

Put pig on a spit over some hot coals. Rotate spit to cook pig evenly. Throw dandelions on coals. When pig is cooked through, enjoy!

MAKES AN EXCELLENT WILTED GREEN IN A STIR FRY.

BEAR IN MIND THAT A ZIPLOCK BAG FULL WILL COOK WAY DOWN.

CHOP FIRST SO YOU AVOID THE STRINGY "SEAWEED" EFFECT.

SUPERB WITH BOK CHOI, CABBAGE, BROCOLI FLORETS & BEEF.

ADD TERIYAKI/PINEAPPLE OR CURRY/GINGER SAUCES FOR FLAVOR.

HINT: THEY FREEZE WELL TOO. SO PICK PLENTY NOW WHILE THE GETTIN IS GOOD AND THEY ARE NOT AGED/BITTER, STILL TENDER

Toss the greens and flower heads in a salad with vegs and other greens, got on in fridge now

Dont use the white heads, he he

You can cook the leaves like any green. I find them too bitter alone, but maybe early ones are sweeter. I gathered those along with poke, lamb's quarter, and something else I can't recall right now with my grandmother for wild greens. Very astringent.

I think I've seen people put dandelion blossoms in salad, but the texture is not appealing to me. I like the idea of the petals in the batter for fritters, though.

My mom made these a few times when I was a kid growing up......I actually dont remember if I liked them or not, MUST NOT have been so good cause I only remember her making them a few times. If they were good I assume she would have made mor often.

My southern granny used to boil them up with some bacon and chopped onion (could also use ham or sausage) until they were good and tender, maybe 30-45 min. Then serve with butter and vinegar (I like to use balsamic; malt is good too).

You know what...now that I think about it it was the leaves and not the stems. I hadnt had that salad for atleast 25 years. Thanks for clarifying. I wonder if the Mods could delete that comment...wouldnt want anyone to get sick!

Pre-boiling mellows this root. Remove from water and dry them. Saute the roots in olive oil, it creates a robust flavor. A little Tamari soy sauce on them is good. Eat them like french fries.

BREADED DANDELION BLOSSOMS (from “Cooks Dot Com)

1/4 c. milk
2 tbsp. powdered milk
1 tbsp. baking powder
1 egg
1/2 c. flour
Pinch of salt
16 lg. fresh dandelion blossoms
Fat for deep-fat

Mix all ingredients except dandelion blossoms and fat. Wash blossoms lightly; drain. Do not allow to wilt. Dip blossoms into batter. Fry in deep fat until golden.

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I just eat rinse the leaves and eat 'em raw to get the full effect of the bitters. Or else I add 'em to salads.

edit: I just rinse the leaves and eat 'em raw to get the full effect of the bitters. Or else I add 'em to salads.

Lost my star (sigh)

This is just a test to see if "special smilies" will post without the coveted star.

Test:



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Yaay! I can still post special smilies! Thanks mods.

:thankss334:

Last Edited by Aquarius 7 on 04/24/2009 01:48 PM

dandelion cousin, chickory, is used in coffee. Wash and dry and roast tap root of dandelion and add to coffee.

[link to www.prodigalgardens.info]