Dandelion Pesto

Photo and Recipe by Tod Dimmick









For visitors to the department of Keep An Open Mind, dandelions offer tremendous flavor.  Harvest them from places where no pesticides have been used (so beware of the lawn, as healthy as those specimens might look).  Dandelions in the vegetable garden?  Perfect.  The best flavor comes from fresh, young leaves in the spring.

Fun fact:  Those cheerful yellow "weeds" have been consumed as food, and for medicinal use, for thousands of years.  The ancestors of the nemesis on your lawn were actually brought to the US on purpose.  Crazy, you say?  Check out the history of taraxacum officianale.

INGREDIENTS
2-3 cups fresh young dandelion leaves, washed and dried
1-2 cloves garlic
1/4 cup chopped walnuts
1/4 cup shredded Parmesan
1/2 teaspoon salt
3-4 tablespoons olive oil

DIRECTIONS
Use a food processor with the cutting blade.  Place leaves in the processing chamber, and top with the nuts, Parmesan, and salt.  Put on the lid.  Turn on the processor, and add the olive oil in a thin stream until the mixture achieves a thick, smooth consistency.  Scrape down the sides and pulse again.  Scrape into a dish and enjoy pungent spring flavor.

Tip:  try with pasta.

Variations:  Try pine nuts instead of walnuts.

Grilled Asparagus with Dandelion Butter

Photo and recipe:  Tod Dimmick

This rich, pungent butter offers a tasty counterpoint to Asparagus' assertive flavors.  If any dish can taste "green", this would be it.
Note:  Use only dandelions grown without pesticides.

Prep time:  10 minutes
Cook time:  10 minutes
Serves:  4 as a side dish




INGREDIENTS
1 lb asparagus, cleaned
3 TB olive oil
Salt to taste
1 to 2 cups chopped fresh young dandelion leaves
1/3 cup sliced toasted almonds
3 TB butter
1/2 tsp salt1/2 tsp freshly ground black pepper
2 TB olive oil
about 2 TB olive oil

DIRECTIONS
Preheat your grill.  Toss the asparagus with the olive oil.  A large plastic container with a lid, or a large plastic bag, is perfect for this.  Sprinkle asparagus spears with salt, and arrange perpendicular to the grill bars.  Grill for 5-7 minutes, turning once, or until spears are tender crisp.  Arrange on a platter and cover to keep warm.

Preheat a small skillet over medium heat.  Using a food processor equipped with a cutting blade, process the dandelion leaves, almonds, salt, and pepper to a chunky consistency, adding the olive oil in a thin stream to facilitate processing.  Scrape this mixture into the skillet and cook for a minute, stirring. Distribute asparagus to serving plates, and divide the dandelion butter over each serving.