Eating the Weeds - Dandelions

Spring officially started this weekend, but for us, it starts with dandelions.  You know, those pesky yellow weeds that contaminate manicured lawns and the bane of suburban gardeners.  How many millions, if not billions, of dollars are spent on chemicals just to eradicate a little yellow flower?  Pretty wacky way to spend your hard-earned paycheck if you asked me.

I remember picking dandelions in the school yard, popping the heads off or making little wreaths out of them.  And of course, who hasn’t taken a fuzzy-headed dandelion and blown a wish to the wind?

Rhiannon and I picked just about every dandelion in the yard.  Sadly, there weren’t that many.  It seems that when we lived in the suburbs, our lawn was covered in the flowers - we didn’t spray and it drove the neighbor nuts because they had the “picture perfect” lawn.  Now that we live out in the country we can eat the flowers without worrying about vehicle exhaust and neighbor’s herbicides / pesticides.  So now that I want those weeds in the yard, they don’t want to grow here.  Go figure. 

I took our meager harvest of dandelions and did what any other person would have done; battered and fried them!  Last year I actually made individual flower fritters, but I was too lazy and just plopped them all in the batter & spooned out small clumps into the hot oil. 

The dandelions didn’t use up all of the batter and goodness knows I didn't want to waste it, so I cut up an apple and made apple fritters. 

Fritter Batter: 1 egg, 1 c. flour, 1 c. milk or water, pinch salt, 2 Tbsp. sugar (or more)

I’ve been given permission by the neighbor to pilfer their property of weeds so we’ll have to go up there this week and do some picking.  I’d like to try my hand at making some dandelion jelly if we get enough.

Christine’s Silkies also started laying a few days ago. 

I haven’t decided if I’m going to let them set or not.  I was hoping to have them hatch a few of the larger chicken eggs, but the Silkies are so tiny that I don’t think more than three normal sized eggs would fit under her.