Dandelion Tacos

Dandelions are as powerfully medicinal as they are abundant. Not to be underestimated, it was for good reason that these were some of the first plants brought over here with settlers from Europe. I love drinking the roots in tea, eating the tender spring greens in salads and soups...but the tastiest (albeit maybe not the most medicinal) way to enjoy this spring blossoms....is Dandelion Flower Fritter Tacos!

DANDELION FLOWER FRITTER TACOS

Step 1: Pick Dandelion flowers (this is the fun part!), into a basket on a sunny day. Watch out for bees when harvesting, they too love these early spring blooms. Make sure not to harvest from any areas that have received pesticides, fertilizers or have any enviromental pollutants.

Tip: Don't harvest the flowers until right before you're ready to cook them becuase they will wilt and close up fairly quickly after harvesting.

Step 2: Dip the flowers in a batter made with eggs and cornmeal. You can add salt, pepper, garlic or other spices to this to taste, or if you want to get very forager fancy, you could add in some powdered wild herbs like burdock root, dandelion root or red clover blossoms.

Step 3: Place into a frying pan with hot oil (my preference is coconut oil as it withstands higher temps without burning or becoming unhealthy). You don't have to deep fry them, a nice layer of oil is usually sufficient for frying as long as it's enough to keep them from sticking and you turn them to evenly brown the outsides.

Step 4: Remove the battered, browned blossoms from the pan and place onto a plate with paper towel and let excess oil drain off. Heat up tortillas of your choice and place flower fritters on tortilla shells.

Step 5: Garnish with sauces and other spring delicacies! This is the fun part where you can make this dish your own. Two of my favorite sauce choices are homemade thai peanut sauce or for real spring freshness a cucumber yogurt sauce with added fresh herbs like mint or basil. I like to garnish with a few wild violet blossoms but some sauteed fiddle heads or asparagus would be great too. Get creative!

I have served these to friends and family and had folks think that they were chicken tacos, no joke. It's so fun to see the surprise on their faces when they realize these tasty morsels are Dandelions. And while this may not be the most healthy way to prepare the plant, even the flowers have great liver, kidney and lymphatic supportive properties.