Recipe: Dandelion Salad with Anchovy Vinaigrette
This post is part of Food Renegade’s Fight Back Fridays food carnival. Click here to learn more about sustainable eating and living.
This salad is a quintessential bone-building meal! Dandelion leaves contain more calcium and iron than spinach and anchovy fillets – with the bones – are also a fantastic cource of calcium. The anchovy and balsamic pair well with the bitter nature of dandelion greens rendering this salad a tasty addition to a crisp spring evening. Sweet peppers add additional texture and color. Serves 4.
1 large bunch Dandelion Leaves, or
4 Wild Dandelion Plants *
1 small red or yellow sweet pepper
6 Anchovy Filets
3 Cloves Garlic, peeled
1/4 c extra virgin Olive Oil
3 tb Basalmic Vinegar
Ground Black Pepper
optional: 1/2 avocado, diced or 1/4 cup toasted walnuts
Instructions
Wash dandelion leaves thoroughly and remove any bits of dirt, root or damaged leaves. Dry. Trim large leaves into 2″ long slivers; leave smaller ones whole. Blend anchovy filets with garlic, olive oil and basalmic vinegar. Toss leaves with dressing, then divide among 4 plates. Top with black pepper and serve at room temperature, preferably al fresco in the garden.
*Note: Be sure plants gathered from the wild havent been sprayed or treated with chemicals. If you arent sure, dont use them.
Source: San Francisco Chronicle
March 15th, 2009 at 8:13 pm
Thanks for a great sounding recipe Aimee, I’ll definitely give it a try.
Aside for the issues of what have might be sprayed on the plants you eat, it is sometimes important to know what kind of soil they are grown in. It isn’t always possible to know and I never really gave it a lot of thought until I planted a Pear tree. While digging to get the spot right I uncovered a pile of construction debris that included some very nasty chemicals.
Curious I went to another spot in my yard where we had noted that nothing ever seemed happy there. Sure enough, after digging down a ways I found more junk and waste from when they built all the houses in our cul-desac (sp).
Dennis Dilday, D.C.
Health – Naturally, through Chiropractic, Fitness & Whole-Food Nutrition
March 16th, 2009 at 1:14 pm
Dennis,
This is a great point! It is important to know what is in the soil around our homes and it is an often overlooked aspect of health.
It’s unfortunate that it was common practice to bury chemicals and unwanted materials during construction. When was your home built?
May 29th, 2009 at 6:58 am
Aimee — Thanks for sharing this recipe in today’s Fight Back Friday carnival. I stumbled it!
Cheers,
KristenM
(AKA FoodRenegade)
June 4th, 2009 at 7:42 am
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