Vegetables : Dandelion

A leaf vegetable eaten cooked or raw in soups and salads. Dandelions contain a good source of Vitamins A and C, calcium and iron and an antioxidant. The raw leaves have a bitter taste. Older leaves need to be cooked. Dandelion salad is often accompanied by hard boiled eggs. The flowers are used to make dandelion wine while the dandelion root is ground and used as a coffee substitute. Dandelion tea is believed to stimulate digestive functions and cleanse the liver.