//title: dandelion town
Place: tikøbsgade 5-7
Artist: camilla berner
Dandelion Town
Make Dandelions the Town you live in; handing out dandelion seeds to people at a local market asking them to help me make the Dandelion Town.
the Dandelion Town t-shirt
Dandelion Town marmelade served at the opening
the first citizens start to move in.....
- a month after being planted the Dandelions have grown considerably...
The process of building and growing the town
Tikøbsgade 5-7, matrikel 175
3 boxes, each of 122x80x23 cm, 1 window box, 90 cm long
Dandelions are taken up with a special Dandelion tool, here on the site Tikøbsgade. Get as much up of the root as possible, it gives it better growing conditions when transplanted plus the root can be eaten. I’ve collected roots from several places.
Self-seeded growing: transplanting dandelions that have seeded them selves in pots on my terrace in central Copenhagen. Transplanting 08/08/06 in a window box (facing North West)
Transplanting roots from Vingårdsvej 12, South Funen 08/08/06. The roots werer taken up a week ealier and been in pots before being tranplanted into the boxes on Tikøbsgade. To get the plant growing as quickly as possible again, remove all the leaves and the stalk before putting the roots in the soil. Palces the roots so the are only just covered with soil or slightly visible. The more poor (and cheap) the soil is the better.
The roots in this box are from Vingårdsvej 12, South Funun. The box turns West/North West.
All roots from Vingårdsvej 12, South Funen. Half of the plants have been covered with dark plastic since they were planted here, as an experiment to make the leave more crisp and less bitter in it’s taste. You grow endive salad after similar methods. The box is turning North West.
The roots in this box are from several places: Vingårdsvej 12, sydfyn, Tikøbsgade 5-7 (transplanted 09/08/06), Bregnerødgade 11, backyard (transplanted 09/08/06). Box turning South East
Already a week after transplanting I did this harvest. It is clearly to see the difference between the leaves that have grown under the dark covering and those that havne’t. And the covered ones actually do taste better....more delicate in their taste
about 2 weeks after transplanting! and alot of rain....
This is the third time during 2 weeks I harvest. Here I take leaves from some of those plants that have been covered. The leaves are long and thin in their growth because they strive for the bit of light that must have come through the covering.
besides, right now there are beautiful blackberries on the site....
Raising the flag
Recipes:
How to do
source: Camilla PlumVery tender dandelion leaves is an expensive delikatesse in South Europe. Here in Scandinavia we can just pick them if we are bothered.
Dandelions are known for being very bitter, but so they have not yet become in April – in fact they are less bitter than chicory and radicchio salad.
If you like you can place a bucket over a dandelion for about a week, then they will blanch like chicory and becomes mildere in taste. Light and fresh crispiness.
Dandelion should be picked when they are still laying flat on the ground, and are small and fine. The leaves at this stage can still be red, green, silver grey, green blue or yellowish. Cut the plant beneath the surface of the ground, so that you get a little bit of the root with it. You will need quite a few. Indoor the leaves are carefully taken off the root which is thrown away – the bottom piece, which is pale, is the most crispy. Rinse the leaves in cold water several times – if necessary leave them in the water a little while. When they are completely clean, they can be kept in the refrigerator for 2 days.
Calzoncini with artichokes and dandelions
6 peopleLunch dish
Origin: Unknown
Ingredients:
Dough:
10 g yeast
1 dl water
1 little teaspoon salt
1 pinch sugar
1 teaspoon olive oil
approximately 250 g Italian flour
Stuffing:
200 g just new dandelion shoot
1-2 tablespoon rinsed and drained capers
3 small very fresh artichokes
1 small parsley root
2 onions
4 garlic cloves
2 small red chilli peppers
salt and pepper
1 whisked egg
3-4 tablespoon freshly grated parmesan cheese or pecorino
perhaps, a little more beaten egg to make the stuffing stay more togther
Olive oil for frying
The dough: mix yeast and water, add sugar, salt and oil. Add flour little by little to the mixture and knead the dough until it is smooth and elastic. Put it aside for rising in 1-2 hours (dobble size) in a warm place. The stuffing: Blanch the dandeiion leaves in light salted water in about 2 min. and let them drain well in a strainer. Rinse capers and let them drain. Peel the farthest out leaves of the small artichokes until the leaves look fair and juicy. Beware that some small artichokes have some nasty spines, both on the stem and on the tip of the leaves. Cut the top centimeter of the leaves, cut also the stems off and peel them. Quater artichokes and cut the stems in small pieces. Peel and cut parsley root, onions and garlic gloves. Cut parsley root and onions in cubes and finely chop garlic and chilli peppers. Fry dandelion leaves, artichokes, parsley root, onions, garlic and chilli in oil over a low heat in 6-7 min., add capers, salt and pepper and a drop of water. Let it cook with a lid for about 5 min. Take the pot off the heat let it cool down. Mix in egg and cheese. Divide the dough in 4-5 portions and roll them in ovals approx. 1/2 cm thick. Pull them out like long soles and place a portion of the stuffing on one half of the dough. Fold the other half over and squeeze the edges together with a spoon. Let them rest for about 5-10 min. and then slowly fry them in plenty of oil on both sides until golden. Let the small bread drain well on a piece of paper and serve shredded, as snacks – warm or cold.
Dandelion Juice
Origin: UnknownIngredients:
50-70 dandelion heads
1 litre water
1-2 dl honey
juice of 1 lemon
Pluck the flower buds from the dandelion plants (discard the stem - otherwise the juice becomes bitter). Boil the dandelion flower buds in the water for about 15 min. Pass the liquid through a sieve to remove the flower buds, and then add honey and lemon juice according to your taste. You’ll find the dandelion juice turns a nice dark yellow and can be diluted according to your taste. You can also use the juice to make a wonderful wine.
Dandelion marmelade (Confiture Aux Fleurs De Pissenlits)
Origin: FrenchIngredients:
250 g. dandelion flower buds (picked just before being used)
1 1/2 l. water
750 g. sugar for each litre juice you get after boiling
juice of 1 lemon
2 oranges
Rinse the oranges and cut them into small pieces - without peeling. Then, rinse the dandelion flower buds and dry them in a soft tea towel. Boil both ingredients together in the water for about 1 hour, then drain them through a sieve.
Measure the juice you have left, add lemon juice plus the correct amount of sugar. Boil for another hour. Cool the juice before storing it in sterilized jars.
Boiled dandelion roots in white sauce
Main courseorigin: unknown
Ingredients:
200 g dandelion roots
1 l. water, light salted
1 1/2 dl milk
2 tablespoons flour
25 g. butter
salt and pepper
Boil the dandelion roots in lightly salted water twice. Stir the milk with the flour until thickens evenly and then boil the roots in this white sauce for 5 min. Add butter, salt and pepper to taste.
Dandelion – cucumber salad (during April-May)
origin: UnknownDandelions are known for being very bitter, but if you pick them around April they are much sweeter. They are best picked when still laying flat on the ground, when they are small and fine. The leaves at this stage can still be red, green, silver grey, green blue or yellowish. Cut the plant beneath the surface of the earth, so you get a little bit of the root with the plant. The paler bottom ends of the leaves are the most crispy and are great in salad.
Rinse well in cold water. The leaves can be stored in the refrigerator for about two days.
Ingredients:
1 handful of dandelion shoots
1/2 cucumber
1 dl buttermilk
1 teaspoon sugar
perhaps,1 dl. sliced mushrooms
Pinch the fresh dandelion shoots into small pieces. Slice the cucumber thinly and mix both with the buttermilk and added sugar. The salad can also be sprinkled with freshly sliced mushrooms.
Wild Spring Salad
4 peopleOrigin: Unknown
Ingredients:
1/2 l tender dandelion leaves
2 bundles of radishes
1 dl whey cheese
1 garlic clove
1/2 dl oil
1/2 dl water
Shred the green leaves and the radishes and mix in the whey cheese. Press the garlic and mix its juice with oil and water. Combine with the leaf, radish and whey mixture.