Dandelions - juice and vinegar

Sometime back there was a lady who came to the University where I work to demonstrate the versatility and nutritional value of weeds.  Of all the weeds she showed us to pick, the dandelion was my favorite - and easiest as I have loads of it in my back yard.  The plant is nutritious from flower to root.  I have made two easy things for you to try today.

I used the leaves to make a healthy green juice and the flowers to make some vinegar.  The leaves are slightly bitter so if you do not like the bitterness, try to pick the very tender leaves.  You can use the leaves in salads and cook them like you would cook spinach.

Dandelion Leaf Juice

Ingredients:

A large handful of dandelion leaves, cleaned and washed 
1 green apple
a handful of walnuts
a small slice of ginger
a dash of lime / lemon juice
honey to taste (optional)

You can experiment with other ingredients in your juice too, like cucumber, alfalfa sprouts, celery etc.

Method:

Blend all of the above with a little water.  Pour into a glass, garnish with a slice of lime.  Enjoy.  Dandelion leaves are an excellent source of vitamins A, C, K, E, folate and small amounts of vitamin B.  They also contain iron, calcium, magnesium and potassium.  Presence of dandelion in your garden indicates a healthy soil.  

Dandelion Flower Vinegar

I collected a small basket full of flowers for my dandelion infused vinegar.

Wash the flowers, let them air dry for a while.  

Put them in a glass jar with a glass lid and top up with apple cider vinegar.  Use a steel or glass stirrer to get rid of air bubbles.  Close the lid and let the goodness of the flowers seep into the vinegar.

This is what it looks like after a month:

You can use the pickled flowers in your salads.  Reserve the vinegar for use in salad dressings.