Are you Lovin' your Dandelions?

As I look outside at my freckled lawn masses of Dandelions wink back at me snickering their heads off! ...and next it will be their offspring!!

What shall we do with all of these Dandelions that our 'green' society won't allow us to poison; must we must make like Marie Antoinette and cut off their heads?... or shall we harvest them!?

For the creative types a natural, dark red dye can be obtained from the root or for the hungry thirsty type you can make n' partake in Dandelion salad chased by some alcoholic Dandelion wine! Dandelions have health benefits too and are used in herbal teas both for pleasure and as a medicinal agent or tonic. Even the milky sap is used as a wart removal method. Who'd have thought such a bounty existed at our doorstep ;)

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Dandelion Salad Recipe

- Tear 1 cup young dandelion greens into bite sized pieces then eat!

Upon trying a leaf, I recommend trying the other option below and to top it with a generous portion of creamy garlic dressing and crispy bacon bits!


Deluxe Dandelion Salad Recipe

- 4 cups young Dandelion greens
- 2 cups fresh Spinach
- 1/2 cup Alfalfa Sprouts
- 1/2 Red Onion, thinly chopped in rings or half slices
- 1/4 cup fresh Parsley
- 2 chopped, ripened Tomatoes
- 1/2 tsp. fresh or dried Basil
- 1/4 cup Dandelion petals (sprinkle atop the salad as a finishing garnish)
- Bacon bits


Or...
 
You could kick the healthy salad and whoop up a party! Those Dandelion heads you wanna hack off make fine Dandelion Wine and for that you'll need these recipes and a party theme such as a Pig Roast BBQ. You'll also require loads of Dandelion flower heads with equal amounts of boiling water and sugar combined with lemons and oranges. Readily available ingredients and a fairly simple process makes this the option seem somewhat appealing, if only I liked wine!
 
I'm thinking your family will either love these creative approaches or they'll appreciate why 'they' need to cut the grass ;) ...my version of reverse psychology. 
 
Tips...
 
- Do make sure young kids know and understand it's not safe to eat all flowers!
- Do use unfertilized Dandelions
- Do use the smaller, younger greens rather than older, large ones
- Do wash the greens thoroughly
- Do choose greens from a pet free zone (we don't want to taste their dislike of Dandelions)
- Do pick your greens (Dandelions, not your nose) before the flower blooms to lessen the bitterness