Refreshing dandelion iced tea recipe

This herbal refreshing dandelion iced tea recipe will be your new favorite refreshment for warm and sunny afternoons. Ditch the store bought iced teas full of refined sugar and artificial ingredients! Making your own dandelion iced tea is a great way to enjoy highly nutritious dandelions and your favorite raw local honey or vegan dandelion honey.

You can enjoy dandelions in your salad, use their flowers to make fresh dandelion flower tea, or an oil for your homemade salves, enjoy dandelion lemonade! You can even use it in homemade herbal bone broth. This recipe uses all of the dandelion for maximum benefits. This study by Cambridge discusses the various parts of the dandelion plants having a long history of being used as an herbal remedy; and roots of this herb being considered for enhancing digestion. 

Ingredients in this recipe:

• Whole dandelion, root included
• Black tea
• Lemon
• Ginger
• Water
• Raw honey

Quantities in recipe card below!

Step by step process for making this recipe:

1. Pour 2 cups of water in saucepan. Add your dandelions, tea, ginger and bring to simmer and cover.
2. Let it simmer for a few minutes and then turn off the heat.
3. Allow to cool for about 5 minutes.
4. Once slightly cooled, but not yet cold – add in your honey and lemon slices.
5. Take a large pitcher and fill it halfway with ice. Pour the tea into the pitcher through a strainer.
6. You can serve it in glasses and use dandelions, fresh mint leaves or lemon slices as garnish.
7. Enjoy!

How to harvest dandelions for your tea:

Dandelions are easily identifiable and abundant. They’re notoriously easy to harvest and simple to clean and use. The entire plant is edible from flowers, leaves, to root.

I like the harvest my dandelions from my own garden.  We’re lucky to have a garden where they grow abundantly, without fertilizer, however we also don’t have pets. Make sure you’ve located a safe space that’s free of fertilizer and that is not visited by dogs.

To harvest the entire plant from root, use a weeding fork. I have and can recommend this one. Angel the fork about an inch into the soil to loosen the root, and then carefully pull the entire plant from the ground. Shake free from dirt and remove any damp or slimy leaves.

Ideally, you would harvest dandelion while it’s still young, as it becomes extremely bitter after the leaves become older.

Cleaning dandelions for consumption:

Run dandelion crowns and green through water, while carefully opening their crowns to be sure you’ve removed any dirt and pests.

If you’re using fresh dandelion root, peel the “skin” as if it were a carrot, and clean it well. Then you can slice it exactly like you would a carrot. Give it a try!

Nutritional benefits of dandelions:

The greens of the dandelion are highly nutritious, and the entire plant is edible!

From their root to their flower, dandelions are considered to be a highly nutritious plant. Dandelions can be eaten raw or cooked (or consumed in delicious lemonade!) and are an excellent source of vitamins A, C, and K. They also contain vitamin E, folate and small amounts of other B vitamins. And dandelion greens contain several minerals, including iron, calcium, magnesium, and potassium. Dandelions are often thought to improve skin health and provide relief for cramps and aches.

Nutrition facts in dandelions:

One cup of chopped dandelion contains approximately:

• 24.7 calories
• 5.1 grams carbohydrates
• 1.5 grams protein
• 0.4 gram fat
• 1.9 grams fiber
• 428 micrograms vitamin k (535 percent DV)
• 5,588 international units vitamin A (112 percent DV)
• 19.3 milligrams vitamin C (32 percent DV)
• 103 milligrams calcium (10 percent DV)
• 1.7 milligrams iron (9 percent DV)
• 0.2 milligram manganese (9 percent DV)

Other refreshing drinks:

• How to make lavender lemonade
• Naturally pink peach basil lemonade
• How to make rose water lemonade
• Dandelion lemonade