When she’s not eating pizza, pasta, and Calabrian chilis, Giada De Laurentiis is likely eating the dandelion quinoa and garbanzo bean salad from Erewhon. But De Laurentiis recently came to a realization about her favorite fast lunch — she can just as easily make it at home (and we can, too)! It has such simple ingredients but a lot of flavor, and you can make enough for a few days in just about 10 minutes.
“There’s this salad that I crave every week, and I went last week to buy it and it was sold out,” De Laurentiis says in a recent Instagram video. “At that point, I realized … why do I keep buying this salad and not just making it? So, here it goes.”
The base of the salad is dandelion greens, which you can buy at more specialty grocery stores if your local market doesn’t have them. You can also pick them from your front yard if you have dandelions sprouting up!
“They tend to be a little bit on the bitter side, kind of like arugula,” De Laurentiis says. “They’re really good for you, though.”
Chop the dandelion greens into small shreds and add in your cooked and cooled quinoa and a can of organic garbanzo beans that have been rinsed and dried. “As for measurements,” De Laurentiis says, “I don’t know. I’m just putting whatever I want and whatever I have!”
Then, for dressing, De Laurentiis adds fresh lemon juice and olive oil, as well as a sprinkling of salt. Then give the whole thing a good toss and it’s lunchtime! The flavors are tangy, savory, and so interesting that you’ll start craving it every week, too.
“It’s funny how easy this is to actually make and I have way more than I need and it’ll last me a few days,” De Laurentiis says. “Sometimes it’s worth it. Actually, it’s always worth it.”
In search of more summer recipes? Giada De Laurentiis has plenty:
