A Dandelion Post

Pictures for Linda, :)  This is the way I like to find them, with long, plump leaves and lots of buds getting ready to flower.

I take a large yogourt container out to collect the buds for us, and an old paint can to collect the leaves for the critters.

Back in the house, a quick rinse, and they're ready to use. Of course, we don't use any pesticides on our lawn, so no worries there. The yogourt container was enough to fill 4 snack bags- which is a perfect amount for winter stews, as well as a handful thrown in with the beans for supper tonight. These will be served with butter, and salt to taste.

And here's a picture of some of last night's leftover potatoes.

Potatoes fried with fresh chives, dandelion buds, and garlic. A hint of lemon juice, and a dash of seasoning salt. You can see that some of the buds open up while cooking.

Why eat 'weeds'?  

Well, for one thing, they weren't always considered weeds.  The settlers brought them over here on purpose.

For another, they are one of the earliest edibles available locally.  Sure, in this day of supermarket living that may not be a real concern to most people.  But have you noticed, you can buy dandelion greens in a lot of grocery stores these days?  My question is, who is buying them instead of picking their own?  I mean, seriously, one of the bonus points...

They're free!

They are highly nutritious, packed with vitamins, minerals, and antioxidants.

They are easy to identify.  No field guides required.  Unless, of course, you've really been living under a rock.  Bigger than my rock, even.  Ha!

And in my neck of the woods, the next local item on the menu is going to need a few weeks yet...

Rhubarb coming up.

You can look online for recipes for dandelion greens, dandelion fritters, dandelion salad, dandelion coffee, dandelion syrop,  and dozens more.  Or, you can just toss a few leaves in a salad or a soup pot, throw some buds in your stew, soup, potatoes, or rice, or stir fry.  Yummy stuff!  I'm going to try a batch of dandelion fritters tomorrow for brunch!