Who Ever Said There is no Such Thing as a Free Lunch?

There are many great things about this time of year - daffodils, tulips, hyacinths, people cheerier and smiling in shirt sleeves, longer days and promises of fresh, local produce. Until that produce kicks in, we starve it out, willing ourselves not to buy the clamshell strawberries that taste of nothing more than the plastic they come packed in, salivating at the thought of the market and bags of Wanda’s salad mixes, looking at the rhubarb to see if it is tall enough to cut yet. We overlook one of the most plentiful and delicious, especially at this time of year, greens that comes free to any lazy gardener - the evil dandelion.

This early, dandelion greens are tender and still fairly mild. Later in the year, they get tougher and stronger tasting, sometimes furrier and need more heavy handed cooking. And, let’s face it, if your lawn is anything like mine, there is no shortage of them.

Poppy and I spent a beautiful morning, pulling dandelions out of the path in front of our house. Poppy, after listening to me whine about them all morning, asked, ‘What are we going to do with all these horrible weeds?’ 

I made a mental note to once again be careful of what comes out of my mouth in front of her, ‘We can eat them all up.’

‘You can’t eat plants that you find because they might be poison,’ she replies, hand on hip.

‘Dandelions are safe darlin’. We can eat them and they are really good for us.’

‘Can we eat some for lunch Mommy?’

‘You betcha!’

I also had some fresh eggs, from my grandfather’s chickens and I thought, how perfect, a free lunch.

If your eggs are this dirty, please wash them before cracking. Also, don't forget that the omelette is cooking while you are busily playing restaurant. As you will see, mine got a little darker than it should have. 

Dandelion Omelette

4 nice fresh eggs beaten

1 or 2 nice big handfuls of dandelion greens

1/4 onion finely diced

1/2 cup feta cheese

1/2 teaspoon butter

1/2 teaspoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Rinse or soak dandelions in cold water. Dry them off but no entirely, the extra few drops of water will help them to cook.

Heat pan over medium heat. Add oil and butter. When butter is melted, add onion and saute until translucent. Add dandelions and saute until soft. Pour in egg and quickly stir to mix. Turn heat to low and gently cook omelette. Add feta and roll omelette. Or, if you prefer just fold it over. Flip it onto a plate and feel very virtuous while eating.

Okay, so it wasn't entirely free. I paid for the feta. And for the onion. And for the olive oil and butter. But, most of it was and that felt good.