Dandelion - Weed or Delicacy?

Once in a while, "our organic farmer" will throw into the box something unusual that will usually sit in the refrigerator way too long before I send it out to the compost.  It used to be beets or Swiss chard, but now these are some of my very favorite foods. This time, it was fresh spring dandelion greens - the common "weed".  I usually make this salad with mesclun and/or arugula but I was out of those and the big bag of dandelions sitting in my refrigerator for almost too long beckoned. It was surprisingly good!  I've done a little research on this weed and found that it is a very nutritious and detoxifying food.  Could it be that I will anticipate the dandelion harvest each spring from now on?

Dandelion Beet Salad

dandelion Greens or any flavorful greens such as mesclun/arugula
cooked beets
blue cheese, goat cheese or feta cheese
walnuts, lightly toasted
salt and pepper
olive oil or walnut oil
champagne or balsamic vinegar

My Spring Babies

This is at least my 3rd year planting vegetables and herbs from seed and it never ceases to amaze me. I'm not sure why I am always surprised to see a tiny sprout coming out of the soil. It is truly a miracle what grows from a tiny seed.

My kids look at me funny when I call them "my babies" but I really do get attached to them, watching them grow, nurturing them and then having them reward me with delicious fruits to nourish my family. 

What I will do with all these seedlings is another question. I certainly don't have room in my garden for all of them. I'll have to put some of them up for adoption to a good home and the rest I will squeeze into the tiny plot outside my kitchen door.

Pictured below are Annie's zinnias. She planted a zinnia plant in preschool last year and it survived the summer, even providing shelter for a Monarch butterfly chrysalis which we witnessed in stages from caterpillar to butterfly. Grammy helped harvest the seeds from the zinnias last fall, and now - more babies! Behind the zinnias are Calendula, the "2008 Herb of the Year"- easy to grow and great to make into calendula herbal applications.  More on that to come!

Madison's Ice Cream Parlor

Don't these ice cream cones look yummy? Annie's best friend Madison made these a few days ago on a warm early Spring day with only one ingredient - chalk!

Her artwork was the inspiration for this raspberry frozen yogurt.  This was my first attempt to make frozen yogurt and it was really good! It is much easier to make than traditional custard-type ice cream. The flavor is a little tangier- and we all enjoyed it.  You can adjust the amount of sugar in the recipe according to your tastes.  Use the best organic whole milk yogurt you can find, or make your own.

Raspberry Frozen Yogurt

adapted from 101cookbooks.com

makes about 1 quart

3 cups (720g) strained yogurt or Greek-style yogurt (see note below)

3/4 cup (150g) sugar

1/2 cup raspberry puree
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Mix together the yogurt, sugar, raspberry puree and vanilla (if using). Stir until the sugar is completely dissolved. Refrigerate 1 hour, then freeze in your ice cream maker according to the manufacturer's instructions.  Transfer to a container and freeze to harden the ice cream further if desired.

Note:   If you are starting with standard yogurt, it will need to be strained.  Line a sieve with cheesecloth and set it over a bowl.  Fill the lined sieve with yogurt, cover and let sit for several hours in the refrigerator, or until desired thickness is achieved.  The whey will separate from the yogurt and collect in the bowl.  I like to save the whey in a jar and add to smoothies for a probiotic boost.  You will need about 5-6 cups of yogurt to get 3 cups of the strained yogurt needed for this recipe