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Dandelion Apple Blossom Lemonade

The apple tree flowers and dandelion flowers bloom at the same time, and its so lovely to see the bright yellow dandelions dotting the green grass under the soft pink apple blossoms. And the bees buzzing from flower to flower. So why not combine all 3 into a refreshing drink: the apple blossoms, dandelion flowers and bees honey. It tastes delicious and even my husband liked drinking it too.

Here’s the recipe: 1 cup dandelion flowers (I used only the yellow parts of the flower), 1.5 cups apple blossoms, 4 cups water, 2 large lemons, 1 TBSP honey (I used lilac infused honey but you can use any sweetener and adjust the amount to your preference). Directions: after picking the flowers set them outside on a plate for awhile so that any bugs can crawl away. Put the petals in a pot. Pour boiled water over the petals, stir, cover the pot and let sit until it becomes room temperature. While the water is still warm stir in the honey and add the freshly squeezed lemon juice from the lemons. After the liquid is room temperature, strain out the flowers, and pour into a jar. Place in the refrigerator. Drink it once its nice & cold. Its quite cooling & refreshing on a warm summer day. Keep refrigerated and drink it within 1-2 days. An added Bonus is that the dandelion stem makes a perfect hollow straw for drinking! Enjoy!

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Dandelion Shots

Did you know that Dandelion is one of the strongest & most commonly used herbs in Chinese Medicine? Pu Gong Ying is the Chinese name. Dandelion strongly cools heat & clears toxicity from the body. Heat toxins can manifest in the body as red skin eruptions, acne, sores, cysts on the skin or breast abscesses, red or painful swollen eyes, vaginal infections, urinary infections. Dandelion is used to help cool & clear these heat toxins from the body. Dandelion also directs energy downward, promoting urination, and clearing heat via the urine. In fact the french name for Dandelion is Pissenlit, which means “Pee in bed”. Since Dandelion is so diuretic, Dandelion should not be taken long-term by people who have low blood pressure.
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In Chinese Medicine Dandelion is usually combined with other herbs as part of a tea formula but fresh Dandelion leaf & flowers can also be ground into a juice, warmed and drank with a touch of honey. I call this a Dandelion Shot. Just grind up dandelion leaf & flowers in a blender with a little water then pour into ice cube trays & freeze for later use. Then when I need dandelions cooling detoxifying medicine, I can put a cube in a tea cup, add hot water & honey, then drink. A cube of Dandelion puree can also be added to soups to increase the nutritional and medicinal value of the soup. Large doses of Dandelion over many days may cause mild diarrhea, but otherwise Dandelion is a safe medicinal food. Enjoy!

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Dandelion Flower Salve

Dandelion Flower Salve… I first learned about Dandelion Salve from the book Practical Herbs by Henriette Kress. She recommends Dandelion Oil or Salve to help relax neck & back muscles that are tight due to tense emotions. I’ve also intuitively been applying Dandelion Flower Salve to the solar plexus of my acupuncture clients who exhibit symptoms of deficiency in their Earth element (Stomach & Spleen) such as Overthinking, Weak Digestion, Bloating, Excessive Mucous, Fatigue.
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Dandelion flowers are bright yellow solar radiance, and the color associated with the Earth element (Stomach & Spleen) is yellow. Dandelions are quite bitter, and the bitter flavor stimulates the Rest & Digest mode of our nervous system, helping us to relax, digest & assimilate food as well as information that we ingest. We can absorb these properties from the herbal salve into our body. I have also found that Dandelion Flower Salve helps soften & moisten dry cracked feet, which is a common symptom here in Finland.
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Recipe for Dandelion Flower Salve: collect dandelion flowers & spread them on a sheet to dry for a few weeks, or dry in a dehydrator or sauna. Make sure they are totally dry. Fill a pot with dried dandelion flowers. Add oil (I like sesame oil) to cover the dandelion flowers. There should be enough flowers in the pot that if you put a knife in the pot it can stand up by itself without falling over. Place this pot inside another pot with water, or a double-boiler. Bring water to boil, then lower heat to simmer for 2 hours. Keep adding water to the bottom pot as the water evaporates. Make sure that water in the bottom pot does not splash up into the oil flower mixture in the top pot. Occasionally stir your flowers & oil with a clean dry spoon. After 2 hours remove the pot from the double boiler & let it cool for 30 minutes. Wipe off any water from the outside of the pot. Strain the oil. Then mix 750 ml dandelion oil with 100g beeswax in a pot. Place this pot in another pot with water, or double boiler. Stir until beeswax is melted. Once the beeswax is melted test the consistency by dipping a frozen spoon into the oil. (A frozen spoon is a spoon that has been sitting in the freezer for awhile). The oil will harden on the spoon. Rub the hardened oil from the spoon between your fingers. If the oil is too hard, then add a little more dandelion oil to the pot. If the oil is too oily, then add a little more beeswax to the pot. Test the consistency again with another frozen spoon. Once you are pleased with the consistency, pour the oil beeswax combo into small containers. I add a drop of vitamin E to each container to help prevent rancidity. Let the salves totally cool & harden before you put the lids on the containers. Enjoy!

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Dandelion Bud Capers

I did the thing: Dandelion Bud Capers. Been seeing them on instajam and since my yard is full of dandelions I decided to give them a try. They actually taste really good! No bitterness and kinda pickle-y tasting. If you have dandelions, I suggest you do the thing too. Dandelion benefits your liver and Spring is the perfect season to support your livers ability to detox and cleanse after a long winter of eating heavy rich foods. Also dandelion capers are naturally fermented and fermentated foods benefit your gut as they help replenish friendly bacteria in your intestines. Dandelion capers are quite healthy and easy to make. When picking dandelion buds, of course you only want to pick dandelions that have not been sprayed with pesticides or chemicals and only harvest from dandelions that grow in a clean area. If you look down in the center of the rosette of dandelion leaves then you will see small round dandelion buds about the size of a hazelnut. They also taste nice just eating them raw. If you would like to make dandelion capers, here is one easy recipe that I adapted from The Elliott Homestead: 2 cups dandelion buds (remove the bottom little frills (phyllaries) and stems, 2 cloves chopped garlic, 3 juniper berries, 3/4 TBSP salt mixed into 1 cup water. Rinse buds in cold water then put into a clean jar. Add garlic & juniper berries. Cover buds with enough salt water to completely submerge buds. They will float so put a piece of plastic wrap over the jar then slowly push down another jar into the first jar. This jar will push down the buds so they stay underwater. Make sure the buds always stay under water. Let this sit on the counter for 5-7 days so it can ferment. Then its ready to eat after 5-7 days. Keep refrigerated. You can add capers to salads, stir-fries, as a side condiment or even eat them as snacks. Enjoy!

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Dandelion Syrup & Dandelion Yellow Dock Seed Potato Bread

Dandelion Syrup tastes amazing, sort of like a nutty honey flavor. And it tastes sweet yet healthy and wholesome on top of Dandelion Flower Yellow Dock Seed Potato Bread. Recipe for Dandelion Syrup: Use only the yellow flower part of the dandelion. 4 cups of yellow florets plus 1 sliced lemon and one-half sliced orange boiled in a pot with 4 cups of water, then reduce heat to simmer for 10 minutes. Put a lid on the pot while simmering. After simmering for 10 minutes remove from the stove and strain. Let it sit for 3 hours at room temperature. Then add 3 cups of birch sugar (you can use regular sugar if you prefer). Stir to dissolve the sugar, place on the stove and bring to a boil then simmer 1-2 hours, stirring occasionally. It turns thick and golden like honey. Once its at the consistency you like, pour into clean glass jars. Keep refrigerated. If the sugar crystalizes you can warm it up to make it more liquid. Serve on any type of bread or on bread with butter, such a treat! Recipe for Dandelion Flower Yellow Dock Seed Potato Bread: 1 egg, 300g mashed potato, 100g flour, 1 tsp yellow dock seeds that have been sifted to remove the outter layer, 1 TBSP dandelion flower petals or more if you like the flavor of dandelion petals, pinch of salt. Mix ingredients together into a dough and flatten into round patties with your hands. Bake on a baking sheet that has been oiled or lined with baking paper, for 15 minutes at 220C. Enjoy with butter and/or dandelion syrup!

Dandelion Syrup & Dandelion Yellow Dock Seed Potato Bread