Fried Dandelions

Since Spring is almost here, I thought I would share a "different" kind of recipe with you.  Last year was my first time to try these and I was pleasantly surprised by how good they were.   Dandelions are very good for you.  If you research them you will find that they are high in Vitamin C and also good for other things like the liver.  Anyway, we seem to have a natural abundance of them around here and so rather than kill them, I decided to put them to good use.  The first year I made Dandelion syrup which was very good.  It tasted a lot like honey, but it didn't last long before it became granulated, so instead of syrup I decided to make Fried Dandelion Blossoms last year.

RECIPE

Step one:  Go into your yard (or your neighbors if they don't mind :) and gather as many Dandelion blossoms as you think your family will eat.  You are looking for the yellow flowers, not the white puff balls :)

Step two:  Rinse them in cool water.  Handle them gently and don't let them stay in the water very long, because they will start to close on you and you need them to be open.

Step three:  Lay them on paper towels and gently pat dry and begin heating your oil for frying.

Step Four:  Lightly batter them just like you would okra, squash, or green tomatoes.  Since my son is gluten free I use cornstarch and salt & pepper.  If putting them in a milk & egg mix before coating remember to handle gently.

Step Five:  Fry them until they are golden brown, remove from heat, and drain on a paper towel. 

Step Six:  Eat and enjoy!

My children were very skeptical about this and thought I was crazy for feeding them "grass", but I persuaded each one of them to give it a try.  Everyone of my children (even the most skeptical) ate several of them and actually thought they were good.  The taste really isn't that much different from fried okra.   If you use older, bigger blossoms there may be a slight hint of bitterness, but I really didn't notice it much and probably wouldn't have noticed it at all if I were not really paying attention to every detail so that I could argue (I mean persuade ;) my children into trying them.  They did not seem to notice any bitterness at all.

There are other ways that you can enjoy Dandelions this spring.  In addition to frying the blossoms you can also eat them raw in a salad.  The greens (when picked young and tender) are also good in a salad or cooked as you would turnip greens.  (The older leaves will be bitter.)   Look them up on the internet and you will find all kinds of interesting recipes and nutritional information.  Hope you get the opportunity to give Dandelions a try at your house this spring.  I definitely plan to.