We've all seen their bright fuzzy faces, yellow against green lawns. We've probably seldom thought that they were useful for anything. But dandelions are one of the most underrated wild foods.
Now that I've followed the Urban Forager's recipe for Dandelion Jelly, I'm viewing dandelions in a whole new light. The jelly tastes like a wildflower bouquet of honey. In a word, yumma.
Maybe I'll have to take a stab at violet jelly this spring at the country house.
I also highly recommend if you try to pick 200 heads of big dandelions that you employ small children who don't have to stoop so far to the ground. It is, as the Urban Forager says, very slow food, but I find jam/jelly making a bit of a meditative process, like when my mother used to make me tie reconstituted lily buds for a special birthday soup.
You can also eat the dandelion greens! I haven't tried it, but I'm intrigued ...
