How to Cook with Weeds: Dandelion Green Pasta

Yes, the title is a joke, and no, this is not that kind of recipe. Plenty of the plants we pull out of gardens and pavement cracks are perfectly good to eat, and some of them, like dandelion greens, are sold at farmers markets for a good price. Cooking with them is thrifty, a little wild and surprisingly delicious.

Forage with care

• Only eat a plant you can identify with complete certainty. When in doubt, leave it.
• Avoid roadsides, lawns that may have been sprayed and spots where dogs are walked.
• Pick young, tender leaves; older ones are tougher and more bitter.
• If you have no safe place to forage, buy dandelion greens at a market. They are cultivated and taste the same.

Weeds worth knowing

• Dandelion: bitter, leafy greens, best young or briefly blanched.
• Purslane: juicy, lemony and crunchy, lovely raw in salads.
• Lamb’s quarters: mild and spinach-like, good wherever you would use spinach.
• Chickweed: tender and fresh, nice in salads and sandwiches.

Dandelion Green Pasta
Serves 4

• 12 ounces orecchiette or spaghetti
• 1 large bunch dandelion greens, about 8 ounces, washed
• 4 tablespoons olive oil
• 4 cloves garlic, thinly sliced
• 1/2 teaspoon chili flakes
• 1 lemon, zested and juiced
• 1/2 cup grated pecorino or parmesan, plus more to serve
• 1/2 cup toasted breadcrumbs
• kosher salt

1. Bring a large pot of well-salted water to a boil. Trim the tough ends of the greens and cut the leaves into two-inch pieces.
2. Drop the greens into the boiling water for one minute to tame their bitterness, then lift them out with tongs and set aside. Keep the water boiling.
3. Cook the pasta in the same water until just short of tender. Save a cup of the cooking water before draining.
4. While the pasta cooks, warm the olive oil in a wide pan over medium heat. Add the garlic and chili flakes and cook until the garlic is pale gold.
5. Add the greens and a pinch of salt and toss for a minute or two.
6. Add the drained pasta, the lemon zest, half the lemon juice, the cheese and a splash of the pasta water. Toss until glossy, adding more water if it looks dry.
7. Taste, add more lemon juice or salt if needed, and serve topped with breadcrumbs and more cheese.

Too bitter? Use half dandelion greens and half spinach, or blanch the greens for an extra minute.