Dandelion Root Tea

It's spring! Or at least so say the dandelions around my apartment. I decided to take advantage of the situation to make dandelion root tea. I unfortunately didn't gather many roots -- I was out for about 15 minutes when I was struck by a horrible headache and went back inside. Before I got the chance to dig up some more, the landscaper had mowed the grass and the dandelions with it. They'll be back soon, but I decided to just make a small batch while I wait.

Dandelion Root Tea

Prep time: 10 minutes (not including time needed to dig them up)
Cook time: 1 hour, 20 minutes or 1 day rest followed by 20 minutes cooking
Total time: About an hour and a half

Yield: 20 roots will yield one serving of tea

Ingredients

• Dug up dandelions, roots intact

Directions

1. Remove the dandelion roots from the rest of the plant. You can use the rest if you like (the greens can be added to a salad and the flowers can be used to make cordial). Rinse the roots several times, until all the mud has been removed.
   
2. Either spread the roots out in the sun for a day (my method) or bake at 200F for about an hour, or until dry.
   
3. Bake the roots at 350F for 15-20 minutes, or until roasted brown.
   
4. Either chop up the roots or grind them in a coffee grinder or food processor. I opted for the last choice and make a coarse powder the consistency of coffee grounds.
   
5. If you chopped the roots, steep them in hot water for 10 minutes to make tea. If you ground the roots, place them in a coffee maker and use them the way you would coffee grounds.