Saturday, May 21, 2011

Dear Dandelion can you come for dinner?

In my last post I said we would be talking about cayenne pepper. Well, my dear Dandelion decided otherwise. As you can see in this picture, it's high season here for this precious and very unappreciated plant.

But the dandelion is one very generous herb. Unlike Echinacia who stores her properties in the flower heads or Nettles in the leaves or even Valerian who stores its properties in the roots, Dandelion shares all her parts to help us stay in good health.

Have you tried making muffins with Dandelion flowers in the batter? Well, you should! Not only does it add a wonderful yellow color to the batter but it also adds a very subtle honey-like taste. It's delicious! Not very medicinal but take them to the office and watch them disappear!

Springtime usually means detox time for your body and soul. What better way to start a gentle detox that adding dandelion leaves to your daily salad. Dandy Dandelion is a hepatic herb, meaning that it helps your liver stay healthy. Considering that your liver is vital for your survival and that is functions include glycogen storage, decomposition of red blood cells, plasma protein synthesis, hormone production and detoxification, a little TLC every spring with some Dandelion greens is a very nice way to say thank you. And for you soul, well just go pick a bunch of dandelion flowers and tell me you don't feel like a child again...

Well, springtime only lasts so long and summer is full of activities then comes fall when my dear Dandelion shares her last secrets with us. Fall is the time where you can dig up dandelion roots and either dry them to make to or do as I do, and make a tincture with the roots (I'll give the recipe in a later post). It keeps for 2 years and is known to help in liver problems, including chronic liver congestion, it's a bitter tonic and helps relieve constipation. It's also good for promoting appetite and to help digestion.

So, next time you dig up a dandelion from your lawn or garden, don't throw it away!

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