Dandelions are plants that are not very popular. There are a huge number of homeowners who look at them as some kind of problem because they pop up all of a sudden on their seemingly ideal lawn.
However, in the recent period, there are many people who are becoming aware of the usefulness of dandelions. These flowers are edible and very nutritious and they have the ability to boost skin health.
Dandelion is great for healing rough and cracked skin, treating burns and removing acne. If we use dandelions together with some other ingredients that are good for the skin like coconut oil, we will create an incredible, natural moisturizer that can help people regardless of their skin type.
Gathering Dandelions
In case you didn’t know, dandelions are one of the crucial sources of food for most pollinators. If they are gathered from the yard, they should not be removed completely.
It is a better idea to leave few of them so they can spread again. In case you are harvesting dandelions from other location and not from your yard, perform some research and find out whether the location is clean and chemical-free.
Once you gather the flowers, leave them on top of a tray lined with towel for 3-4 hours in order to help the insects leave the area. After that, expose them to sun and let them dry well. In case it’s a sunny and
hot day, it won’t take more than 3-4 hours for these flowers to become completely dry. On the other hand, if the weather is not very good, you can use an electric dehydrator.
Dandelion / Coconut Cream Recipe
- Ingredients and Equipment:
- Quarter cup of dandelion flowers (dried)
- Half a cup of coconut oil (organic)
- Eight drops of lavender essential oil
- Saucepan
- One-pint canning jar
- Manual mixer.
Instructions:
First of all, you will have to fill the coconut oil with dry dandelions. Place the coconut oil in the jar and put the jar to the saucepan. Pour sufficient amount of water in the saucepan. The water should reach 2-3 inches up the sides of the canning jar. Turn the heat on low and wait till the coconut oil begins to melt.
When the coconut oil is finally melted, put the dandelion flowers. Leave them steep in this oil and keep the heat on low for a couple of hours. Check the amount of water from time to time because you should not leave the pan without water.
Once these two hours pass, turn off the heat completely and leave the jar to get colder. Next, use a strainer to separate the dandelions from the coconut oil. In the end, the oil should get a bright yellow color typical for dandelions.
Pour the lavender essential oil and store the infused oil in the refrigerator. Wait until the cream gets firm.
With the help of a manual mixer, whip this newly formed cream until it gets texture similar to frosting or whipped butter. Place the mixture in a clean glass jar. You can also use a tin container. Keep this cream in the refrigerator in case it is very warm in the house. When you apply this cream on the skin, you will notice how it melts instantly.
You can also use it as a natural lip balm directly on your dry feet or dry elbows. In addition, many people have used it to ease muscle aches and sore muscles, to soothe acne redness and many men have found it useful as a natural aftershave cream. This is probably the best natural moisturizer you can create at your home