The dandelions are in full swing and happily blooming away here in my Oregonian garden. I do not consider them a weed and neither does my daughter. She has been plucking off the blossoms with abandon while making them into cute little bouquets for everyone. I took note of this the other day and realized that I better get my behind in gear if I wanted to collect any myself!

I smartly enlisted her in helping me and we had a lot of fun gathering blossoms together to make dandelion vinegar. After collecting a colander full I gathered our supplies and she helped me in the 3 step process. (I must add that my favorite container to use for gathering herbs is my old colander. The little holes are perfect for allowing any little insect that may have been hiding in the plant an escape route.)

Step one:

Gather your dandelion blossoms

Step two:

Place your blossoms into a glass jar

Step three:

Cover the blossoms with apple cider vinegar (I recommend organic)

You now want to place a non-metallic lid on your jar and leave the vinegar in a cool, dark place for approximately 6 weeks. After the 6 weeks have passed, strain your vinegar and use in your daily cooking. It can be used to make vinaigrettes, season a pot of cooked beans and soup, added to a marinade– I could go on and on! It is tasty and good for you!

For more information on making herbal vinegars I highly suggest reading this article by Susun Weed.

Yesterday I had my younger two children outside in the garden with me and it sure seems that spring is indeed coming early over here. I noticed the chives have returned and are already at least 3 inches tall. It seems early to me unless my memory is failing me! I’m looking forward to using the chives again. I noticed yesterday that last year’s chives reseeded themselves nicely so I will have plenty this year for soups, salads, bake potatoes, dips, I could go on and on.

Some chives would have been a nice addition to a soup I made the other night for dinner. It was a really simple, creamy soup that tasted so good and was gluten free and dairy free. It made a lot which is a good thing because my son can take the left overs to school for his lunch. We have been struggling to find lunches that he can take that are both easy to prepare and gluten free. Don’t even get me started on what his high school serves for lunch! They really need to think about adding some gluten free choices.

ingredients

Gluten Free Dairy Free

Creamy Cauliflower Soup

To make the soup:

• Chop up one head of cauliflower
• Slice up about 3 leeks, white parts only
• peel and chop one celery root
• mince a couple cloves garlic

Toss all of this into a pot with some homemade stock (or store bought if you don’t happen to have homemade on hand). I used enough stock to cover everything by about an inch or so. Bring to a simmer and cook uncovered for about 25 minutes or until the celery root is tender. Puree the soup to your desired consistency. Enjoy!

It was really very good and you do not miss the cream from dairy at all.

We have now been gluten free for a full 2 months. It is still a struggle but we are adjusting.

I am still undecided about where this blog is heading but thought I would share this yummy soup as it makes a nice and light early spring meal.

How is everyone’s garden doing right now? Anyone else noticing spring is on the way?

So much snow fell today and when it stopped briefly this afternoon we had a treat just outside our back window as the view was simply breathtaking.

I cannot believe Christmas is only 5 days away. I am not as ready for it this year as I normally like to be. All the issues with the kids’ health and whatnot have taken a toll on me. I am trying to get over a particularly nasty cold as I type this. I had wanted to post a few things about some of my handmade gifts that I will be giving this year but as I look at the calendar I am realizing I have all but run out of time. Instead I think I might pay a visit to some posts I have previously written that are appropriate for this time of year and weather.

Some recipes worth revisiting:

• Spicy-Herb Roasted Nuts
• Mulling Mix for Apple Cider
• Hot Buttered Rum
• Ginger, Lemon, and Honey Tea

I do believe this will probably be my last post this week (maybe even for this year) seeing that the big holiday is so close to being here. I want to wish all my readers a wonderful Christmas and a safe and merry New Year.