Tags

, , , , , , , ,

Remember those days when you were a kid and you’d pluck a dandelion seeded bud? You would bring it to your mouth as close as possible, close your eyes tightly, and make a wish. Then, you’d blow as hard as possible to ensure each little seed would float away into the distant air with the hope that the wish will come true.

Ahhhh, the sweet memories of being a child — playing outside and hoarding each dandelion because one wish was never enough.

A wish is just simply special and gives this magical child like feeling.

While I was grocery shopping last week – I came across beautiful organic dandelion greens. There were no seeded buds to make a wish but they were there for me to purchase and consume. Who knew?! You could eat dandelion greens!

I avidly remember those weekends my mom would make me weed the front and back garden. Those dandelion roots were stubborn and I’d dig and dig in hopes that next week – I wouldn’t have to weed. They just kept popping up and by then, I’d just get a hold of the greens, tear it off and that was enough. I simply gave up. Now, I am going to call my mom and tell her that the dandelions should never be plucked but only for food. She’ll call me crazy and continue on her gardening ways.

So, I brought the dandelion greens home and did a little research online. There were so many articles and so many ways to consume dandelion greens. The greens have this grassy sour taste to it. The stem is a slightly bitter and chewy that’s why it’s highly recommend to harvest the greens in early spring when it’s tender and the before the flowers appear. This will offset the bitter taste and chewiness.

Here’s what I did with my dandelion greens:

  • I made pesto (a lot of it!), which I am sharing with you today. It’s mighty fine. The recipe is adapted from a basil pesto recipe – just replace the basil with dandelion greens. I ate the pesto straight from the jar, used it for my pasta and on a thick piece of baguette.
  • I sautéed the greens in olive oil with garlic and enjoyed the crunch.
  • I added the coarsely chopped up greens to my omelet giving it the farm to table flair.

 Dandelion Pesto
Adapted from Gourmet, 1996 via Epicurious.com
Makes approximately 1.5 cups

4 cups packed fresh dandelion leaves, washed very well
1/2 cup pine nuts, toasted
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan
3 garlic cloves (I love garlic!)
1/4 cup plus 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

  • Combine all ingredients in a food processor, puree until smooth. Make sure to season with salt and pepper at the end and quickly blend again.
  • The pesto can be stored in jar and refrigerated up to 3 to 4 days. Or you can freeze until ready to use.