Delicious Dandelions

We’ve been pretty busy in the garden of Rose Bank House. We’ve put in eighteen rose bushes and a lot of other plants as well.

We’ve had to clear out a lot of weeds to make room for the plants and that included a lot of dandelions.

I just can not bring myself to throw dandelions in the compost. Although most of the recipes I post on my blog are desserts, I’m actually something of a health freak.

There are a lot of health advantages to eating dandelions and I really enjoy the taste.

I’ve noticed a bit of resistance to the idea that dandelions can taste nice. I can only conclude that people who have eaten them, have eaten them strictly for the health benefits and paid no attention to making them delicious.

What a pity.

I’m not interested in being a health freak at the cost of flavour. I’m an artist. Cooking is an art.

If it doesn’t taste wonderful, it’s not good enough.

If it’s going to harm you, it’s not good enough either.

Dandelions can be bitter. The lower down the plant you go, the more bitter they become. The base leaves are absolutely rank.

So don’t pick those.

I start picking about halfway up the stem. That also helps me avoid the little prickly hooks that old dandelion leaves develop.

If I started munching at this point, it would still be pretty gross.

I like to use dandelion leaves as a substitute for spinach or silver beet in cooking. I like spinach and silver beet, but I like dandelions more. I’m careful to chop them finely and they are particularly good in quiches and pies.

If I want to eat them raw, then I marinate them for at least thirty minutes. Olive oil, balsamic vinegar and honey make a delicious marinade and removes any trace of bitterness.

Dandelions are famous for their health benefits. The Greeks and the Romans were very keen on them.

In fact, the name ‘dandelion’ is derived from the Greek word ‘leontodon’ meaning ‘lions teeth’. Theseus is said to have feasted on dandelions for thirty days before he set off to kill the minotaur, a half man half bull that had resulted from some very weird behaviour between Queen Pasiphaë and a white bull. I cover this myth in my third volume of Greek Mythology, coming soon, under my pen name, T.R. Winters.

Dandelions represent resilience. How helpful, since I was viciously attached by Eureka (our long haired Siamese), while taking pictures for this post.

There was a stiff wind blowing and he was in a cantankerous mood.

Pop over to my recipe section if you want to try eating dandelions for yourself. I promise the recipes will be delicious (once I get them up!)

To finish off, here is a lovely poem by Walt Whitman.

The First Dandelion

Simple and fresh and fair from winter's close emerging,

As if no artifice of fashion, business, politics, had ever been,

Forth from its sunny nook of shelter'd grass—innocent, golden,

calm as the dawn,

The spring's first dandelion shows its trustful face.