Superfood: dandelion

In fact, one of the healthiest foods grows right at your front door. What most people have long dismissed as a weed is actually a dietary supplement -- and is much cheaper than many that are not even half as effective. We are referring, of course, to keywords: dandelion. Here’s a little-known fact: you can eat dandelion leaves, stems and blossoms -- so there are countless ways to include this vitamin-rich plant in your diet! 

The easiest way to enjoy dandelion is to throw some on your salad. Just rinse it and toss it on top to add a new taste -- and an extra dose of healthy greens! Fresh leaves are especially tasty in salads, but even older ones lose their tart notes with a few drops of oil and provide a unique flavour.

Dandelion tea is no less delicious. Make it by pouring boiling water over dried or fresh leaves and blossoms.

Hungry for something new at lunch? Try dandelion as a vegetable. Prepare the fresh green leaves as you would leaf spinach. 

If you’re looking for a way to give a cake or fruit salad a special touch, use dandelion blossoms! The bright yellow flowers are a very tasteful (and tasty!) decoration.

Dried dandelion roots also make good coffee substitutes. 

And dandelion has another special feature: in addition to its delicious flavour, the healthy, vitamin-rich vegetable has a healing effect. Keywords: Dandelion has been shown to build and purify blood. It is also effective as a diuretic and can help tone the body. That benefits health and beauty! Its diverse healing properties are obvious from the many ailments it has soothed or even healed. 

Above all, these include conditions affecting the respiratory system, like bronchitis and dry cough. But dandelion is also used to treat fever, loss of appetite, spring fever, rheumatism, gout, headache and allergies. Those with digestive ailments can breathe a sigh of relief:  the healthy green can treat constipation and upset stomach. It has also been shown to have a beneficial effect on haemorrhoids, poor liver or gallbladder function, and even gallstones. But not all of the lush veggie’s benefits are just for health. Dandelion is good for beauty too! With regular consumption, pimples disappear rapidly. Chronic skin problems are soon visibly improved and disappear completely in time. 

Dandelion has another major advantage: this ‘power plant’ is available year-round! Only the concentration of active substances fluctuates throughout the year. In general, dandelion salad is most effective in the spring, because in autumn the plant begins to store important ingredients in its roots for the winter. The solution: use the dandelion roots to make coffee! If you like dandelion to taste less bitter, harvest it between 3 and 4 p.m., because the bitter content is lowest then -- but the vegetable is no less healthy!