YESTERDAY'S LUNCH

Some women buy shoes, some shop for clothes. Me? I buy food, mostly vegetables, almost obsessively. I have been trying to cut back on other food purchases, especially grains as I refuse to buy any until I completely deplete my pantry stocks. In fact, I am trying to avoid going to the store entirely and rather shop at the farmers market exclusively while emptying out the pantry. It shouldn't be too hard to avoid Whole Foods for a while. What will be a challenge, however, is to use the tiny amounts of random grains, flours, assorted legumes and spices.

Yesterday, I made a salad from the lettuces in my garden and a pasta with some garbanzos, capers, some farmer's market dandelion greens and plenty of the olive oil that I bought at the Saturday farmers market. So many of my peers will tsk at my love for pasta, but I cannot deny it. It is such a good vessel for incorporating more greens into one's diet, at least it is in our house.

Dandelion Greens Pasta

pasta of your choosing
1 bunch dandelion greens, sliced into thin ribbons
1 can garbanzo beans, rinsed
1 tablespoon capers
2 large garlic cloves, thinly sliced
1 tablespoon red pepper flakes, less if you can't take the heat
olive oil
sea salt
pepper
zest of one lemon

Cook the pasta according to package directions. While it is cooking, heat a couple of tablespoons of olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add the dandelion greens and garbanzos. Cook until the greens begin to wilt, then add the garlic, red pepper flakes, capers and lemon zest. Season with salt and pepper. Add the cooked pasta to the pan, drizzle with olive oil to taste. Yum.