Hot Salad with Dandelion Greens

This side dish of dandelion greens with a simple stovetop custard sauce flavored with bacon and apple cider vinegar is a PA Dutch classic. My Grammy Drake taught my mom how to make it when my parents were first married, and my mom gave me the recipe. I’ve made it before but not for a few years. I guess I got busy and somehow forgot how special a memory this homey mixture is. Actually, my mom used to make the custard minus the bacon, vinegar and greens and pour it onto a dinner plate; I would eat it still warm and it was very soothing and yummy if I had a tummy ache.

Back to this version that my father loved: the dandelion greens are slightly bitter; the bacon is salty and crisp if you add it at the very last moment. Mixed together with the tangy custard it is so delicious over freshly made mashed potatoes. It tastes like my childhood.

Notes: There are a few secrets to it. Use whole milk to get the proper thickness and rich flavor for your custard. Use real bacon and chop it up before frying. Pick tender greens and clean them well: rinse, remove any bloom stalks and dead or yellow leaves. Rinse again. Double check and rinse one last time. Spin in your salad spinner or dry in lint free kitchen towels. Finally, it’s critical to stir the custard often as it cooks and keep the heat low; it is pretty easy to scotch this delicate sauce.

Hot Dandelion Salad

Custard Ingredients:

2 Tbsp. rice flour

1.5 Tbsp. sugar

pinch of sea salt

1 cup whole milk

1 large egg, lightly beaten

2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

2 slices of bacon fried to crispy perfection – crumble after they cool

1 qt cleaned dandelion leaves, no flower stems, roots or brown/yellow leaves. Wash several times and spin dry in your salad spinner. Baby spinach makes a good substitute for dandelions.

Freshly made mashed potatoes

Directions: Mix the flour, sugar and salt in a 1 qt saucepan, preferably one with a heavy bottom. Add the milk and whisk together. Place over medium low heat and whisk in the egg. Cook slowly until it thickens quite a bit, could take 3-5 minutes. Remove from heat, cool for 5 minutes and add vinegar; whisk well. Add a tsp or two of the bacon fat and stir in the crumbled bacon and washed and torn dandelion greens. Serve while still warm over mashed potatoes. Goes well with roasted trout, fried heirloom porkchops or salmon fillets. Enjoy!

Cheez Its – Warning: They can be Addictive!

Okay, I have been seeing these new gf Cheez It crackers in social media. Didn’t see them in the Giant grocery store until today; they are not in the gluten free section but right next to regular Cheez Its in the cracker aisle; bold as brass! Buy one get one free; okay; I’ll do that. Got them home. Forgot about them for 3 hours. Opened one and ate just one. Nice crunch. Kinda burnt tasting but in a good way. Ate another. And another. And like 20 more! Okay, they are definitely dangerously addictive. The ingredients are relatively mild for a highly processed food. They are a tad burnt looking; could just be the batch mine were made in; the picture on the package doesn’t look that dark. The price was high-ish but not when you are getting the second one for free. I had to seal up the box and put it away so I couldn’t eat them all. 30 crackers have 150 calories. So, ten small crackers have 50 calories. and it has 2.5 g of saturated fat in those 30 crackers. Plus 230 mg of salt and 5 pm of cholesterol. No sugar; a blessing.

So, if you’re itching to try them; get them now while the sale is on and enjoy this blast from your past; I haven’t had a Cheezit in like 14 years. Tasty if somewhat addictive for me who I like to think of myself as having a non-addictive personality… or highly addictive if that’s your personality. Worth a try regardless. Enjoy! You’re welcome!