cooking with CANNABIS
by Chef Sebastian Carosi
It makes me feel proud to have weeded my neighbor ’ s yard of the most useful wild edible weeds known to man .”
The dandelion . Yeah , you know , that bright yellow flower better known as a nuisance . It ’ s probably one of the most common and recognizable varieties of edible weeds in the botanical kingdom today . Just take a look in either your front or your backyard . They ’ re there . The name dandelion comes from the French term dent de lion , or lion ’ s tooth . It has a multitude of other not-so-common English names such as blowball , cankerwort , milk witch , Irish daisy , lion ’ s teeth , monk ’ s head , priest ’ s crown , puffball , faceclock , and , the best one of them all in my opinion , piss a bed ( it ’ s an effective diuretic ). The entire plant is edible . A powerhouse of dense nutrition , comparable to most so-called super foods such as spinach and kale . Dandelions have been used as a culinary pot herb , salad green , and medicinal plant throughout Europe since the Roman times . My grandfather was from Abruzzo , Italy , and loved dandelion greens and wine . Most explorers brought dandelions to North America for use as food and medicine on their voyages . Despite its deep-rooted history as a glorious culinary green , in our day the dandelion has become suburbia ’ s worst enemy . Even with this negative shift it is still considered a great source of food , beverage , and medicine to many that immigrated to the Americas . Harvested year around in mild climates , they are rich in potassium , vitamin A , vitamin D , iron , zinc , and contains more iron and calcium than that go-to garden green called spinach . The raw leaves of dandelion are super bitter , which is why my Italian grandfather loved them raw , boiled , stewed , sautéed , and especially braised in a little balsamic vinegar . Eating the crowns and flowers raw in salads or crispy tempura fried are my go-to dandelion preparations . These nicely sized dandelion fritters are in a very light and lacy tempura style batter , making these party poppers hard to keep up with ! It makes me feel proud to have weeded my neighbor ’ s yard of the most useful wild edible weeds known to man . Later that day I was fortunate and thoughtful enough to have served him his own weeds induced with a little weed , to make weeding more fun , of course . The tasty smoky ranch dip will have all the neighbors begging you for more of those crispy country fried front yard flowers better known as a nuisance . Don ’ t worry , it ’ s considered hip to eat weeds these days . I hope you enjoy them as much as I do .
SC
Chef Sebastian Carosi trained at Portland ’ s Western Culinary Institute , apprenticed with renowned chefs in Italy , and went on to lead the Farm 2 Fork movement in New England and the mid-Atlantic states . Find him on Instagram at @ chef _ sebastian _ carosi .
40 Maximum Yield