A soaked muffin using whole wheat pastry flour and oatmeal, lightly sweetened with honey, is speckled with dandelion petals. It’s a lovely muffin, just perfect for serving with a springy soup (Asparagus Egg Drop Soup would be a good choice). (Read about soaking grains here)
I think it’s so lovely having the beautiful tints of yellow from the flowers in the muffins. In fact, I was very proud of these muffins as I was showing them to my older sister. She really liked them, then asked what nutritional benefit the petals had. “Ummm….I don’t know!” Most articles on dandelions concentrate on the greens, so I still don’t have a full answer for her (This article is an excellent resource for some basic information on dandelions) But what I do know is this, traditionally dandelion greens, petals, and roots have all been used! This article had a helpful tidbit of info on the flowers.
“The flowers of dandelion are an excellent source of lecithin. This increases the brain’s acetylcholine resulting in retarding or stop regressing of mental disability caused by Alzheimer’s disease. Lecithin also helps maintain good liver function, and opens urinary passages.”
They also include a helpful warning “Though dandelion is generally regarded as safe, some have allergic or asthmatic reactions to this herb. The danger is heightened in those who are allergic to ragweed or daisies.”
I think that allergic reactions are rare, however. Be sure to read some of the excellent articles out there about the benefits of dandelions!
Our common “weed” is actually a great resource for us. We try so hard to cultivate gardens, it’s rather ironic that dandelions will spring up everywhere without help. Let’s take advantage of it and eat them!
Like I mentioned in my post for Garlicky Fiddlehead Ferns, wild food is one of my answers to GMO food, which is practically being forced down our throats here in America. Thankfully, we do still have the choice to choose wisely and make a commitment to not support tampered seeds and foods. If you are ready for a challenge, join this month’s No GMO Challenge. It’s surely a challenge that would do you well to make for a lifetime, not just a month. At the very least, read some of the helpful posts in the carnivals. I am certainly learning a lot!
Perhaps you could sit down with some tea and a dandelion muffin while you read about the benefits of dandelions and the dangers of GMO’s.
By the way, these muffins were inspired by the wonderful blog, Fat of the Land. Check it out!
Dandelion Muffins2 cups of whole wheat pastry flour
1 cup of oats
1 cup of coconut milk tonic
1 tablespoon raw apple cider vinegar or lemon juice1/4 cup each of coconut oil and honey, melted gently
1 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
2 eggs, lightly beaten.
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup of dandelion petals ** Pick fresh dandelion flowers. Make sure to pick them from a pesticide free area that has not been sprayed. Rinse well. (I let them soak in a bowlful of water to remove any dirt or bugs). Dry (can use salad spinner), and then, holding the green base of the flower tightly, tear out the petals. The green parts are bitter, so avoid.
1-The night before, combine the flour and oats, and stir in the coconut tonic and vinegar. Cover and leave out on the counter overnight. (Soaking time should be between 12 and 24 hours)
2-When ready to bake the next day, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Add the rest of the ingredients to the bowl sprinkling the baking soda and baking powder evenly over the top so that it doesn’t clump in one place. Stir until well combined. Allowing the muffin to sit overnight, develops the gluten in the flour, so this may be a little bit hard to do. I often just use my hands to squeeze and mix the mixture. Just make sure you aren’t left with a clumpy batter, but mix well.
3-Separate the batter into 12 greased muffin tins, and place in the preheated oven. Cook for 15 to 20 minutes, or until the top is slightly browned and a toothpick stuck in the middle of one comes out clean.
4-Cool muffins and enjoy while hot!
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So I can just go into my backyard and pick them? Wow. Who knew? I’m excited to try these this week. What can I do with the greens? I’m becoming more interested in eating “wild things” but have no idea what to do with them.
Hi Kimberly,
Yes, you can! Just make sure nobody’s sprayed them. 🙂 It’s sure fun being able to get “free” food from our yard. You can use young greens in a salad, as they get older they become more bitter. You can also saute them like spinach. I need to experiment more with the greens myself!
Anyone have recipes or ideas to share?
These would be great with Dandelion jelly. It is made from the flowers. I am at work now, but will find the recipe once I get home and share it with you guys. It is kinda sweet, and taist a bit like honey.
Rosy,
That sounds wonderful! I would love to have you share the recipe. 🙂
What a fun idea! Dandelion flowers are sweet when compared to the greens, I never thought of baking with them. I hadn’t thought of the nutrients either but I know wild food is high in sulfer from rain water and sulfer is very good for the skin and for cleansing calcium deposites. Wild food is great for benificial bacteria and I never wash it, but I do watch for animal poddy and like to pick during or after a good rain. Flowers are very high in ORMUS and the plants put a lot of life energy in its blooms for reproduction, bees are the only ones who can truly see the powerful energy radiating from the flowers as they search for nectar. I wonder if it looks like fireworks to them?
I’ve been eating the greens all spring. I was thinking of making some dandelion soup, but these muffins sound delightful.
Chiot’s Run,
Even better, how about dandelion soup served with these muffins on the side? 🙂 That would be a fun combo!
Alright I have located it…
Recipe comes from Jude’s Herbal Home Remedies by Jude C Williams MH
Dandelion Jelly
Pick 1-1/2 quarts of dandelion blossoms. Take the stems off. Rinse the blossoms well. Add 3 cups of water and boil for about 3 minutes. Drain well and add I teaspoon of Lemon Extract, and 1/2 teaspoon orange extract to 2-2/3 thirds cup of the liquid. Mix in a box of pectin and bring to a rolling boil. Add 4 1/2 cups of sugar all at once to the mixture. Bring to a boil and boil for 3 minutes, stirring constantly. Remove from heat and skim off top. Put in sterile jars immediately and seal.
I don’t see why you couldn’t use a “raw” sugar or maple sugar, but stevia and other non-sugars wouldn’t work with the pectin.
It is super yummy!
Thank you for this inspiration Kimi! Dandelions are great, they are extremely nourishing. Even the FDA ranks dandelion as one of the top 5 nutrient dense vegetables – ahead of collard greens, spinach and broccoli! And all parts but the stems are edible. If you are interested there is a really great little book packed with dandelion information and recipes called The Dandelion Celebration by Peter Gail. A lot of older cookbooks, especially Amish, PA Dutch, European and Middle Eastern cuisines, usually have lots of recipes for dandelion. One of the classic ways to prepare dandelion greens is to make them into a salad with hot bacon dressing poured over them. Here is a Pennsylvania Dutch recipe for hot bacon dressing:
4 slices bacon cut in 1-inch pieces
1/2 c. sugar (use an equivalent of your favorite sweetener)
1/2 tsp. salt
1 Tbl. cornstarch or arrowroot powder
1 beaten egg
1/4 c. vinegar
1 c. cream
Fry bacon slowly until brown, drain on paper towels and reserve fat. Mix the rest of the ingredients together well – I put it in a jar with a lid and shake them together. Pour this mixture into the pan with the fat and slowly bring to a boil while whisking constantly until it thickens. Pour over dandelion greens and sprinkle bacon pieces over top.
Cooked Dandelion Greens: Chop leaves coarsely and add to a pot of boiling water, reduce heat and cook to desired tenderness (anywhere from 15 to 30 minutes). Like any other greens you can add a piece of salt pork, bacon, a ham hock or fat back to the pot. You can put minced garlic on them or put the garlic in the cooking water. You can add butter or sour cream, a squirt of lemon juice or a splash of vinegar on them as well, however you like your greens. Salt and pepper to taste if desired. You can cook them up with other greens too. I hear they can also be steamed but I’ve never tried them cooked that way. The ‘liquor’ or liquid left in the pot is meant to be consumed as well – dip cornbread into it :))
Thanks again!
These look great, Kimi! I’ll try them soon. I was also recently given a recipe for Dandelion Jelly from a blog reader, and am hoping to make some of that as well!
Rosy,
Thanks so much for sharing that recipe! It sounds great, and I am sure you are right. I bet you could substitute another type of sweetener, like rapadura. I made some yummy strawberry jam with rapadura before. Does honey not work with pectin? I know that you can buy the type of fruit sweetener that store bought sugar free jams use. I wonder if that would also be a good choice? Anyone have any experience to share?
Mary,
Thanks for sharing some great recipes and thoughts! I didn’t realize that the FDA thought so highly of dandelions. That’s great to hear. I think I need to go pick some more dandelions tomorrow! 🙂
Stephanie,
I was really happy with how they turned out (once I got the mixture thoroughly mixed). Everyone liked them in our household. 🙂 Let me know if you end up trying to make dandelion jelly. That sounds great!
Come mid-summer the soccer fields in our community are loaded with dandelions. The town usually sprays them with herbicide, but this year I’m thinking of hosting a dandelion festival where, instead of spraying the fields, people will pick the plants and use them for dandelion wine … and now dandelion muffins too!
These sound great and I can’t wait to try them…unfortunitily, here in Alberta we do not have a singly yellow dandelion poking out yet!! Our growing season is drastically shortened; I just noticed the buds coming out on the tree’s this week! I will have to wait a few more weeks before I can try this recipe!
You might be able to use Honey to sweeten the jam, but it might not make as jelled a jelly. I think the Fructose in the honey, and other fruit sweeteners will work but will not set as strongly.
Regarding the FDA and the nutrient value of dandelions- of all the vegetables, dandelions are found to have the highest level of beta-carotene, they are exceptionally high in fiber, iron, potassium, calcium, phosphorus and the B vitamins, as well as possessing many trace nutrients and nutritive constituents that have nourishing and healing effects. Interestingly, the only cultivated veggies that made the top 5 in nutrient value are collard greens (at number 2) and broccoli (at number 5) – the other three top veggies are actually common weeds!!! – lambsquarters, amaranth (aka pigweed), and of course dandelion. Weed ’em and eat ’em 🙂
I’m so excited to try this recipe! My backyard is basically taken over by dandelions. I am just curious as to what you mean by oats. Are rolled oats alright? Or are steel cut oats needed? Thanks!
You could use Pomona’s Pectin to make Dandelion Jelly with honey or other alternative sweeteners. It jells with any sweetener or none at all.
These look very interesting! I may have to try them. 🙂
This info is very helpful. It is sad that I considered these ‘weeds’ a nuisance for all these years. I have so much to learn!
Made these yesterday, just a half a batch, but used the honey and butter in the original amount, mixed the batter with an immersion blender. OH MY! OH MY! SUPER DELISH! Fed my mother one this morning when she came to visit and after she ate it, I told her there were dandelion blossoms in them. She could hardly believe it, SUPER YUMMY!
Very interesting…I linked to you in my post today, because your recipe, with the coconut, sounded different than others.
loved the flower additions… we also go with the wild things that grow around us… fiddleheads, stinging nettle, morels, chantarelles, pigweed, chickweed…birch syrup…
http://wildcraftvita.blogspot.it/2013/01/things-to-do-with-dandelions.html
Linked to this-thanks 🙂