Warmed Garbanzos over Bitter Salad Greens

Yesterday I came home from Monterey Market with more tomatoes anyone in their right mind would buy for two people. I couldn't help myself. As soon as I stepped under the market's canopy the dry farmed Early Girls, whom I haven't seen in almost a year, called to me and I was powerless to stop myself from shoveling them into my cart.* A bag full of basil and a loaf of good bread had also found their way home with me so I decided to make bruschetta, arguably the best way to serve fresh, wonderful tomatoes. However, bruschetta does not a meal make so I needed to find something most substantive to accompany it. Also, I wasn't in the mood to spend a lot of time in the kitchen, so it had to be quick. Motivated by thoughts of herbed italian canellini beans and the memory of this wonderful dish (I made it a couple of years ago and often think about it fondly), I came up with garbanzo beans cooked in olive oil with some simple adornments of garlic, parsley and parmesean. To complement the warm creaminess of the beans I served it over some bitter salad greens, also a Monterey market buy, dressed in olive oil and vinegar. The result was unexpectedly satisfying!

Sadly there are no photos associated with this recipe due to an unfortunate accident involving a car door and Kyle's camera's LCD screen. Hopefully we'll get it fixed soon!


Warmed Garbanzos over Bitter Salad Greens

1 can of garbanzo beans
1/4-1/3 cup olive oil
1 garlic clove, minced with a pinch or two of salt
1/4 cup of loosely packed chopped parsley
1/4 cup grated parmesean or other hard salty cheese
salt and freshly ground pepper to taste

Bitter salad greens in a simple vinaigrette. I used red indian mustard greens dressed with olive oil and sherry vinegar.

Warm the garlic in the olive oil in a very small pot over medium-low heat. Add the garbanzos and continue to cook until the oil starts to bubble. There should be enough oil to cover about half to two thirds of the garbanzos, add more if necessary. Add the parsley, stir and continue to cook for 1 min. Remove from heat and stir in the cheese, salt and pepper. Allow to cool for 5 min then serve over the dressed greens.

* According to wikipedia these tomatoes have a cult following. I'm glad to hear I'm not alone in my obsession! Here is a video about dry farming from one of the local Early Girl producers. He looks like a hipster, talks like a surfer and knows farming like, well, a farmer:

More on Dry Farming from Dirty Girl from Oliveto Community on Vimeo.