Dandelion, Fennel, and Hazelnut Salad

This particular recipe struck me as odd when I first read it in Salamadastron, since fennel and dandelion greens don't quite overlap in season. They get close enough, however, that around this time of year you should be able to find both nice and fresh in your grocery store's produce section.

Dandelion, Fennel, and Hazelnut Salad Recipe

Prep time: 15 minutes
Total time: 15 minutes

Yield: 6 salads

Ingredients

• 4 cups dandelion greens
• 1 fennel bulb
• 12 radishes
• 1 can reduced-sodium white beans, rinsed and drained
• ¼ cup chopped hazelnuts
• 3 tbsp olive oil
• 2 tbsp white wine vinegar

Directions

1. Clean and chop the dandelion greens, fennel, and radishes. (To chop fennel, cut off the green stalks and dispose, then chop the white bulb.)
2. Mix together with the beans and hazelnuts.
3. If you have a shaker, shake together the oil and vinegar, mix into the salad, and separate into 6 bowls for serving.
4. If you don’t have a shaker, separate the salad first, then drizzle each serving with ½ tbsp. oil and 1/3 tbsp vinegar.

Dandelion Cordial

When I moved for grad school, I saw dandelions for the first time and my mind immediately went to this drink. When reading Redwall, I always though that dandelion cordial always sounded like iced tea, something a little less sweet than the berry cordials to pair with the unusual flavor of the flowers. That being said, this recipe is very similar to the strawberry cordial, but it requires a little more prep work. This recipe only requires the heads of the dandelion flowers, which can be plucked off easily without any special tools, such as a dandelion weeder. However, if you are plucking flowers PLEASE be careful not to pick any that may have been sprayed with pesticides or herbicides. If you aren't sure, don't use them!

PLEASE NOTE: Yet again, this is a recipe which needs to be started the day before you want it. Be prepared.

Dandelion Cordial

Prep time: 30 minutes
Cool time: 24 hours
Total time: 24 hours, 30 minutes

Yield: 24 ounces (Three glasses)

Ingredients

• 24 ounces water
• 3 tablespoons sugar
• About three dozen dandelion heads

Directions

1. After collecting your dandelion heads, separate the yellow petals from the green stems.
   
2. Place the yellow petals into a large, heatproof bowl. (You'll want to have about a cup or a cup and a half of loose petals)
   
3. Combine water and sugar in a saucepan.
4. Heat water to a low boil, stirring to dissolve sugar.
5. Pour hot water over petals and allow to sit until cooled to room temperature (about 90 minutes).
6. Cover bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for the rest of the 24 hour cool time.
7. Remove bowl from refrigerator and pour liquid through a fine sieve into another bowl to remove the petals
   
8. Use a ladle to pour liquid into glasses or funnel into bottles for later.

I'm Back!

Hello, internet! I'm sorry I was quiet for so long. The first year of graduate school was brutal and I barely had time to think, let alone create and test recipes. I survived, though! Well...hopefully... Anyway, I hope to start posting new recipes soon, so stay tuned!