| Dandelion Epiphany | |
by
Judy Sobeloff, from the April 2006 newsletter
“While most people would consider a dandelion in their lawn a weed,
to a
vintner of dandelion wine, the grass would be the nuisance.”
—MaryJane Butters, “Outsmarting Weeds”
There I was, pretending to be a dandelion seed in Miss Nancy’s preschool music class about a year ago—floating through the air, landing on the ground, burrowing down—when it dawned on me for the first time that the white puffball dandelions dotting our nation’s lawns are intimately related to the yellow flower-like ones.
Why I had never realized that yellow dandelions beget white dandelions and so on and so on is a matter best left for another day. Suffice it to say that, in addition, I’d never noticed dandelion greens at the Co-op either. Matt in the produce department told me that the Co-op carries both green and red varieties (with a red stripe down the stem) year-round and that customers value them for a wide array of health benefits.
Dandelion greens are, for example, loaded with vitamin A, vitamin C, and iron, with naturalist Steve Brill claiming that the stem’s milky sap “removes warts, moles, pimples, callouses, and sores, and soothes bee stings and blisters.” While the word dandelion comes from the Old French dent de lion, so named because the plant’s long serrated leaves resemble the teeth of a lion, the Modern French word is pissenlit (loosely translated: wet the bed), because the root and leaf tea act as a mild diuretic (www.wildmanstevebrill.com).
If you can’t beat ‘em, join ‘em. And it’s unlikely that you can beat ‘em, because as Brill puts it, “To further increase reproductive efficiency, the plant has given up sex.” Dandelions have no need for cross-fertilization, fertilizing themselves as they scatter their seeds.
I had never eaten dandelion greens before, but I discovered that my friend Sarah, who came over to sample “Dandelion Greens with Almond Vinaigrette and Feta,” eats them all the time. “There are no dandelions left in our yard because they keep getting eaten,” she said. When I marveled at the good cheer with which she was washing pound after pound of greens, she explained that the ones from the Co-op are much easier to clean than the ones from her yard, which are covered with “that wonderful Palouse clay.”
Sarah likes to gather dandelion greens in the spring before they make stalks or flowers and eat them as a salad with olive oil, lemon juice, and cracked pepper. (For more on foraging for young unsprayed dandelion greens, see Sarajoy Van Boven’s “Wild and Free” column in the March newsletter.)
While my children enjoy grazing on all manner of things out in the yard, dandelion greens in captivity held zero appeal. The adults who sampled “Dandelion Greens with Almond Vinaigrette and Feta,” however, responded as if a spell had been cast. “That thing with the toasted almonds, it’s incredible,” Petr murmured, marveling at the combination of the bitterness of the greens with the sweetness of the honey and the saltiness of the cheese. Andrea, a dandelion green neophyte like myself, declared herself a “convert.”
Dandelion greens can also be cooked like spinach, and I found them tasty in a second dish when boiled and sautéed with onions and garlic. This recipe, called simply “Dandelion Greens,” also proved popular with adults but not children.
Those in the know say dandelion greens taste like chicory, endive, or arugula. Brill, who was arrested by undercover city park rangers for illegal consumption while leading a tour group in Central Park, suggests that those wishing to minimize the bitterness cook the greens with sweeter vegetables such as sliced carrots and parsnips or boil the greens in one or more changes of water (though this also leaches out the vitamins).
This spring I hope to see whether my kids like dandelion greens any better if they pick the dandelions themselves. I’ll scan the yard for rangers first.
Dandelion Greens Salad with Almond Vinaigrette and Feta
(adapted from www.fooddownunder.com)
1 lb. unsprayed tender young dandelion greens (about 10 loosely packed cups)
6 Tbsp. olive oil
¼ cup sliced almonds, toasted
2 Tbsp. red wine vinegar
1 tsp. honey
Salt and freshly ground pepper
¼ pound crumbled feta cheese or ricotta salata, shaved with a vegetable peeler
Cut any tough stems from the greens and trim away any wilted leaves. Wash and dry them. For the dressing: combine the olive oil, half the toasted almonds, vinegar, and honey in a blender and blend until smooth. Add salt and pepper to taste. Place the greens in a large bowl, season with salt and pepper, and pour the dressing over them. Sprinkle with the remaining toasted almonds and cheese. Serve immediately.
Dandelion Greens (adapted from southernfood.about.com)
1 lb. dandelion greens
½ cup chopped onion
1 clove garlic, minced
Optional: 1 whole small dried hot chile pepper, seeds removed, crushed
¼ cup cooking oil
Salt and pepper
Parmesan cheese
Discard dandelion green roots. Wash greens well in salted water and cut into 2-inch pieces. Cook greens uncovered in small amount of salted water until tender, about 10 minutes. Sauté onion, garlic, and chile pepper in oil. Drain greens and add to onion garlic mixture. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Serve with grated Parmesan cheese.
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