a bowl of sunshine
as an herbalist, i believe fully that medicine is something you should eat as well as take. prevention of illness can go a long way if you make it a habit to dine on nature’s bounty.
there are so many ‘weeds’ that grow commonly throughout the united states and even the world that are very nutritious and healthful. they include burdock root, dandelions (everything but the stem), violets, chickweed, plantain and red clover.
dandelions are one of the world’s most nutritious plants! 1 cup of dandelion leaves contains 1 1 / 2 times the recommended USDA daily requirements for vitamin A alone! It also contains vitamins B-1, B-2, B-5, B-6, B-12, C, E, P, and D plus biotin, inositol, iron, calcium, potassium, phosphorus, magnesium, and zinc.
i won’t go into all the uses of dandelion, but i will tell you it is an excellent diuretic that does not deplete the body of potassium. so, anyone that needs to flush out their the liver and/or kidneys will benefit from drinking dandelion root tea and eating their greens.
this recipe is one i found online several years ago and then tweaked for myself. it is delicious and could have so many variations. the possibilities are endless.
cream of dandelion soup
4 cups chopped dandelion leaves
2 cups dandelion flower petals
2 cups dandelion buds
1 Tbsp butter or olive oil
1 /4 cup chopped wild leeks (or onions)
3 cloves garlic, minced
4 cups water
2 cups half-n-half or heavy cream
2 tsp salt
2 tbsp Butter
2 tbsp flour
Boil dandelion leaves in water. Strain and add more water. Boil again.
While boiling, sauté wild leeks/onions and garlic in butter until tender.
In a soup/stock pot, add 4 cups water, dandelion leaves, flower petals and buds, salt and sautéed onions and garlic.
Simmer 45 minutes. Add cream and heat until simmering.
While simmering, melt 2 tbsp butter and sprinkle in salt, mixing thoroughly until bubbly.
Add 1 /2 cup soup broth to mixture and whisk. When thickened, add to soup base.
Garnish with more dandelion petals. Serve with dandelion salad and some thick crusty bread.
Dandelion soup, hmmm…
My mother did a lot with wild foods when I was a kid growing up in the woods. She tried making dandelion wine once in the basement. Oh my, the smell coming up was enough to gag us all. Not a good experiment. But the violet jelly was pretty good, as was the fresh sassafras tea. My husbands grandfather from Sicily ate dandelion greens every spring as a spring tonic. Hope you enjoy your soup! It sounds interesting.
Your little sunshine helper is precious, by the way.
we have a few bottles of dandelion mead lying around.
they don’t smell though! 
yes, she is very precious indeed!
Sounds great! I need a spring tonic!
dandelions are the perfect spring tonic as they clean out that sluggish liver.
This recipe sounds good , will definitely give it try. I’ve been busy harvesting all the dandelion leaves I can , do you use them after they bloom ? I’ve read that you shouldn’t , but it’s so hard to get to them before they bloom , I’ve been cooking them anyway. They taste fine to me.
~ Green Blessings ~
JoyceAnn
they can be more bitter after blooming but i don’t that i’ve found a plant that hasn’t bloomed yet.
I also love dandelions and didn’t even realize they were a weed when I was little. After all, I made flower chains from the flowers and then ate the leaves when I felt peckish. Worked fine.
I have a lot of them since I don’t de-weed my yard, but unfortunately, my neighbors use services and I’m worried about eating them from my own yard now.
::sigh::
what is a weed really? most people define it as an unwanted plant..therefore, i personally consider the bushes that don’t do anything but fill space a weed.
sorry to hear about the neighbors. there is a huge flush of dandelions along the farmer’s field but because of the field and the neighboring subdivision run off in that area, i won’t touch those either. it’s a shame because they don’t get cut and are large and beautiful!
This sounds wonderful…I’m on the lookout for dandelions but have yet to see one around here. Can’t wait to try this soup if we find some!
i hope they ’spring’ up soon!
Thanks for the recipe! Can’t wait to try it! Is there a best time to pick and use dandelions? A certain size to search out?
spring is the best time…the warmer it gets, the more bitter they get. but now, they can be harvested and dried, then stored to crumble into soups and over pretty much anything.
if you’re wanting the roots, search out the larger plants so the roots will be larger as well.
sounds yummy, i’ve been wanting to try something dandelion for some time now, knowing the vitamin value of these little “land stars”
how long do you boil the leaves in the beginning process?
i just boil them for a minute or two, pour off the water and start over.
Like ChristyACB, I didn’t know until I was well into my teens that dandelions are weeds:-) But they are tasty…. I didn’t know of all their beneficial properties though. Or that the peals can be used, I’ve always stayed with the leaves.
Is there a caution about eating too much dandelion? Any side effects you’ve noticed?
everything on the dandelion is edible except the stem. i imagine it wouldn’t taste too good. however, the sap from the stem can be rubbed on moles and warts to help get rid of them. it has to applied continuously though so i can’t personally testify that it works.
no cautions…it’s not worse than eating a lot of lettuce or other green….unless maybe a caution that you’ll start feeling more energetic from all those vitamins!!
that could be a side effect too. 
dandelion is one of the safest plants in the world!
of course, just like anything else, one could be allergic to it so when trying it for the first time, error on the side of caution. i’ve never heard of anyone having an allergic reaction to it though.
dandelion is a truly amazing gift from nature!
Kristine, ok I just have to add…..is that picture of your daughter not the happiest thing you’ve ever seen? I keep going back to look at it because when I do, I can’t help but smile….her joy is contagious!
Robbyn
i concur! she has brought so much joy to my life!
There are a whole bunch of dandelions growing in the lawn of a lady I know. And in her orchard. It looks so pretty and spring-like. I think that even if dandelions weren’t useful for eating and herbal uses, I think I would still let them grow cuz of how they brighten up the yard.
[...] Tansy’s post on dandelions reminded me that I intended on sharing my favorite recipe for the greens. I love to roast the really tender young leaves in my roasted root vegetables. It is very simple. Chop up some of your favorite root vegetables. I used sweet potatoes, white potatoes and carrots this time. Then I stirred in a few cups of cleaned dandelion greens, some rosemary, garlic and olive oil. Then just bake in the oven until the vegetables are tender. It is so good! [...]
I am curious about your claim that dandelions contain B-12. I understood there were no plant sources of this vitamin as it can be produced only by bacteria. Was this a typo or do you have some information on this that I don’t? I enjoy eating the leaves, and dry them for use in soup in winter.
i got my information from steve brill’s book identifying and harvesting edible and medicinal plants.
I was wondering about the B12 as well. Seems to always come up. I know dandelions are great for micronutrients – including cobalt which is key in B12. Maybe this is the link. I’ll have to check out steve’s book. Thanks for the post and the info.