Photo: Quanthem/Shutterstock Eat Your Flowers!

Kentucky Dandelion Greens (great with cornbread!).

Try one of these recipes with your next summer dinner:

Or, the young leaves can be cooked like spinach, sautéed in oil and garlic like many leafy greens. Young dandelion leaves make an excellent addition to salads and bring a sharp taste to the mix. Ideally, gather dandelion leaves before the plant blooms, as they will become increasingly bitter and tough. Yes, even the flowers can be eaten! Eat Your GreensĪs with most greens, the plant leaves are best when they are young and tender. Dandelion Recipesĭandelions are so abundant that they’re easy to harvest! And most of the plant can be used-flowers, leaves, and roots. In fact, one of the plant’s common nicknames in French- pissenlit (pee-the-bed)-attests to dandelion’s use in traditional healing cultures as a valuable diuretic agent (rich in potassium). The dandelion is rich in nutrients, including protein, calcium, iron, and Vitamins A and C.ĭandelions are good for digestion and may ease rheumatism or liver problems. Cultures around the world thought of the dandelion as a “common herb” and have used every part of the plant as both nutritious food and powerful medicine. Believe it or not, the dandelion (Taraxacum officinale) was not always thought of as a weed.

Native to Eurasia, this humble member of the aster family has traveled far and wide. Did you know that dandelions can be used in cooking? Instead of mowing them down, harvest them for greens, soup, jelly, pesto, and even wine! Learn more about dandelion’s benefits and find a selection of dandelion recipes to try.

Bonus s weed and feed