I’ve been a small time forager for years, but last spring when I found myself newly unemployed and trying to navigate a pandemic and a recession at the same time, I doubled down on this relaxing, money-saving, health-building hobby. I taught myself how to forage for dandelions, and began gathering the flowers and greens to incorporate into my meals. I found, to my delight, that the humble dandelion is one of my favorite foods. The blossoms are especially delicious, reminding me somewhat of an artichoke drizzled with honey. The yellow fluff is traditionally separated from the green base and used to flavor wines, meads, and confections. Whole flower heads can also be individually battered and fried. I tried these preparations last spring, and found them delightful. But I really wanted a way to incorporate the dandelion blossom as a substantial part of a main dish. Enter the Dandelion Blossom Veggie Burger.

Important! If you intend to forage at all, it’s imperative that you put in your own research time and educate yourself thoroughly about safe foraging practices, poisonous plants, indicators of soil contamination, lookalike plants, food allergies, and more. Believe it or not, there are numerous other plants that resemble the common dandelion. Invest the time to learn how to collect and consume wild foods safely. There are lots of great foraging resources available through your local library, your county extension office, and local foraging clubs. Learn first, then gather.

Once you have learned how to gather the dandelions safely, you’ll need to collect about 2 cups (packed) of the fresh whole blossoms (yellow fluff and green base in tact). It’s ideal to pick them soon after they open fully, which seems to be around 11:00am. You may not be free at 11:00am, and the perfect is the enemy of the good. Pick them when you can get them. If you like, you can also gather some of the leaves at the same time. A delicious and slightly bitter pesto can be made from the leaves, which makes a wonderful sauce for the burgers. (Use a recipe for regular basil pesto, but substitute dandelion leaves for the basil).

After picking, the blossoms need to be processed as soon as possible, but at least within a few hours. They do not keep well when raw. I like to soak the flowers for 5-10 minutes in a large bowl of cold water to clean them, agitating them a few times with my hands. They can be dirty, and they can have little ants in them. Don’t bring them inside until you’re ready to wash them, or the little hitchhikers might escape into your kitchen. After soaking, I gently wring them out with my hands to remove most of the excess water. Now they are ready to use!

To make the veggie burgers, you will need:

• 2 packed cups freshly picked, rinsed, and wrung out dandelion blossoms.
• 6 whole dandelion blossoms, reserved for decoration
• 1 cup cooked & drained black beans (or any leftover cooked beans you might have on hand)
• 1 cup cooked brown rice (or any other cooked whole grain you may have leftover in your fridge)
• 1/2 cup organic cereal, such as fruit juice corn flakes
• 1/4 cup nutritional yeast
• 1/3 cup all purpose flour
• 1/2 heaping teaspoon each of turmeric, thyme, sage, basil, garlic powder. Or, about the same amount of any flavoring herbs and spices you enjoy and have on hand.
• 1/2 tsp each of sea salt and pepper
• 2 tsp extra virgin olive oil, plus more for oiling the baking sheet
• 1 large egg, or two smaller ones

Before You Begin: Oil a baking sheet with extra virgin olive oil, or the cooking oil of your choice. Set your oven to preheat to 350˚.

Step 1: Roughly chop the 2 cups of dandelion blossoms, or use your food processor to “pulse” them a few times.

Step 2: Add all the ingredients except for the six reserved decoration blossoms to a large mixing bowl. With clean hands, massage the ingredients together until they are well mixed, sticky, and cohesive. You could probably use a spoon for this part, but your hands are going to get dirty in the next step anyway. Why wash an extra spoon?

Step 3: When you feel the ingredients are well mixed, scoop up a handful of the mixture and try to form it into a ball. If it’s solid and sticky enough to hold its shape, then you are ready to form the patties. If it’s too dry to hold together, add more egg. If too wet to hold its shape or it will not stick together, add more flour.

Step 4: Shape the mixture into patties of the size and shape you prefer. I like to form a ball first, and then squish it down until it resembles a hockey puck. I usually get about five patties from this recipe, but you may find you have four or six based on how generously you pack your measuring cup, and how large you portion your patties. Place each patty onto the greased baking sheet when it’s complete.

Step 5: Press one of the reserved dandelion blossoms sunny-side-up on top of each patty for decoration. After you’ve finished this, I suggest flipping the patty over so that the dandelion blossom is on the bottom. You’ll flip the patties again midway through the baking cycle, and I think the blossoms come out more beautifully if they finish their baking time sunny-side-up.

Step 6: When the oven is fully pre-heated, place the baking sheet in the oven. Set a timer for 20 minutes. After 20 minutes, take the baking sheet out of the oven and use a spatula to flip each patty over. Use a fork to smooth out any decorative blossoms that might have gotten folded or moved so that they lay beautifully atop each patty. Place the baking sheet back in the oven and bake for 20 additional minutes.

Cool slightly and serve on a bun with your favorite toppings. Some of my favorites include pesto, hummus, and a fresh tomato slice. Or serve atop a bed of spring greens and drizzle with a good balsamic vinaigrette. Extras can be stored short-term in the fridge, or individually frozen for later enjoyment.