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Here is how you cut food costs, eat locally grown vegetables and harvest without having a garden: Open up your front door and walk out to your lawn.

Yup. By mid-May, you could be picking your evening salads out of your yard — fresh, free and locally produced, without any effort on your part. I am speaking here of weed greens.

Scorned by gardeners and manicured-lawn enthusiasts alike, the humble dandelion, chickweed and lamb’s quarters are regularly attacked with hoes, boiling water, full-strength vinegar and chemical weapons. This trio perfectly fits the popular definition of a weed, which is simply a plant growing where you don’t want it to grow.

But while you are bombarding them with every weapon at your disposal, other folks are buying seeds to deliberately grow them in their gardens, paying $5 for 6-ounce bags of them at fancy urban markets, and looking up recipes for them in cookbooks or magazines.

Wild greens were central to survival and highly prized by rich and poor alike until about the time of the industrial revolution, which brought a steady rise in the number and popularity of processed foods. Now, as we learn more about the environmental and health costs of the typical Western diet, weed eating is coming back into vogue. If you pick it from your own front yard, no petroleum products have been used in growing or transporting this fresh food right to your front door. You don’t even have to buy seeds or start the plants yourself.

They are healthier than many of the things you buy at the store, and fresher. As one Cooperative Extension publication has pointed out, “wild edible plants are highly nutritious. Greens are particularly rich in carotene (vitamin A). Leafy greens … are all rich in ascorbic acid (vitamin C).”

Michael Pollan, in his recent book called “In Defense of Food,” states “Two of the most nutritious plants in the world are weeds — lamb’s quarters and purslane — and some of the healthiest traditional diets, such as the Mediterranean, make frequent use of wild greens.” He goes on to point out that many of the wild greens have “higher levels of various phytochemicals than their domesticated cousins. Why? Because these plants have to defend themselves against pests and disease without any help from us.”

There are many edible wild greens, but I am unlikely to set aside an afternoon to make a special expedition for them or venture into boggy spots that require exchanging my Crocs for knee-high rubber boots. But dandelions, chickweed and lamb’s quarters grow, literally, right next to my house. And if I run out of my own weeds, I won’t go wanting because my neighbors are thrilled to share theirs.

Dandelions were brought to this continent for their medicinal qualities (the roots are a diuretic, which is why one of the old English terms for the dandelion was “pissabed”) and to ensure that bees had plenty of food. As Pamela Jones points out in “Just Weeds,” dandelions “rank high among honey-producing plants ... no fewer than 93 kinds of insects help themselves to the dandelion’s lavish larder.”

The flowers have been used to make wine and the roots as a coffee substitute, but since I don’t like either of those beverages, I stick to the leaves. (I have tried peeled and diced root pieces in a stew, and they were OK but not worth the trouble it takes to dig them up.) I harvest the leaves as soon as the plants appear, because once there are flowers it means the leaves have developed a bitterness to them. Even at their youngest, they have a slightly sharp taste, entirely in keeping with other members of its family, like chicory. I have read that if you cover emerging plants with a thick paper bag, you will end up with blanched shoots that can be used like endive — they will also be less bitter than the green leaves.

Dandelion leaves provide vitamins A and C, as well as the antioxidant and anti-inflammatory luteolin. They have more iron and calcium than spinach, and can pretty much be substituted in any cooked spinach dish. However, if served raw you will easily be able to distinguish them from spinach. Dandelion stands up well to strong salad dressings, and is especially tasty with warm bacon dressing. (See lowcarbdiets.about.com/od/soupsandsalads/r/hotspinachsalad.htm for a terrific version.)

Chickweed, which has also been known as hen’s inheritance, was cultivated by the Greeks and Romans — though I cannot fathom why, since it is hard to imagine any population actually could exhaust the natural supply of this prolific plant. Closer to home, “Cooking Alaskan,” a 1983 book that lists the author as “Alaskans,” devotes a lengthy chapter to “Wild Vegetables.” For chickweed it offers one other eradication method in addition to the ones suggested by the Alaska Extension Service, namely, “Invite it in for lunch.”

You can do that by picking it before the flowers appear and adding it to a salad, stir-fry or soup (heating it causes shrinkage, so pick more than you think you will use). Fancy restaurants are now using it as a garnish, but you’ll get more of the vitamin C, iron and phosphorus if you use it in larger quantities. I like to add it to homemade spring rolls and on sandwiches instead of sprouts. I like pasta flavored with a little olive oil, chopped raw tomatoes and chickweed, and topped with slivers of fresh Parmesan. The Chickweed Pie recipe that follows is delicious, and I like the fact that any leftovers still taste great the next day.

Writing about lamb’s quarters is difficult, since it is spelled variously as one word, two words, with a singular or a plural lamb, or hyphenated. Thorough research also demands that you look up some of the traditional names, such as muckweed, dungweed and dirty dick; sometimes it is also thrown in with its cousins under the names of goosefoot, good King Henry, fat hen and pigweed.

Whatever you call it, I can guarantee that you will find it in your yard. When they are tender, I use the stems and weeds, but as they age I find the stems too fibrous except for soups with long cooking times. Like dandelions, you can use lamb’s quarters in recipes that call for spinach or orach, in the delicious quiche that follows, and as an addition to or substitute for lettuce in salads, spring rolls and sandwiches. Another place I like lamb’s quarters is added to Indian masala recipes, or boiled down and drained before swirling a cup or so into cream or white sauces. This green pairs well with tomatoes, so I add handfuls to spaghetti sauce or layer them right into lasagna.

As I was finishing this article, the April 2008 issue of Martha Stewart Living arrived in my mailbox. Apparently we are on the same wavelength, as page 74 has pictures of many edible weeds, including the trio showcased here. There are also recipes for an edible weed salad, a weed pesto, dandelion jelly and dandelion cordial. If you want inspiration beyond what Martha and I are providing, it is worth looking up old issues of The Herb Companion.

Before you abandon the supermarket to forage in your front yard, make sure you are familiar with what these weeds look like. If not, take a dedicated gardener out with you because every single one I know is intimately familiar with dandelions, chickweed and lamb’s quarters. Picking the wrong weed isn’t as likely to be as lethal as picking the wrong mushroom, but there’s no sense in taking the chance of getting ill.

The Alaska Cooperative Extension Service carries a handy little pamphlet called Wild Edible and Poisonous Plants of Alaska, complete with drawings, pictures and written descriptions of which plants to avoid and which to gather. It also gives suggestions as to where to find them and how to prepare them. Armed with this guide, you can forage for many more free foodstuffs than the three I’ve been discussing.

And, finally, don’t eat from yards that have been treated with a weeding and feeding product or a straight herbicide. While they may not have been effective enough to eradicate a stubborn dandelion, these products are poisonous to humans. In other words, don’t spray and eat from the same place.

MIRACULOUS WEED QUICHE

This lower fat, healthier quiche doesn’t require rolling and fitting a crust; it “miraculously” forms its own whole-grain crust as it bakes. This was adapted from a recipe provided by King Arthur Flour, substituting dandelion leaves and chickweed leaves for the spinach in the original recipe. Reprinted with permission.

Crust

1 cup whole wheat flour

1 3/4 teaspoons baking powder

1/2 teaspoon salt

2 1/2 tablespoons nonfat dry milk

2 tablespoons (1 ounce) butter

Filling

1 medium onion, peeled and diced (5 ounces, 1 cup)

2 tablespoons (1 ounce) butter or vegetable oil (7/8 ounce)

1/8 teaspoon dried thyme ( used basil instead)

1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg (omit if you don’t like nutmeg)

2 cups (15-ounce container) ricotta cheese

1/2 teaspoon salt

3/4 cup (6 ounces) egg substitute, or 3 large eggs, beaten

1 cup of boiled, well-drained and chopped weed greens

1 cup (4 ounces) grated low-fat cheese; jalapeño or plain cheddar, Jarlsberg, or the low-fat cheese of your choice.

Topping

1 cup (8 ounces) low-fat sour cream

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Use non-stick vegetable oil spray to heavily grease a 9-inch deep-dish pie pan (at least 1 1/2 inches deep), or a 9-inch spring-form pan.

For the crust: In a large bowl, whisk together the flour, baking powder, salt and dry milk. Mix in the butter with a fork, a pastry blender, a mixer, or your fingers, until crumbly. Set it aside.

For the filling: Saute the onion in the butter until it’s soft and becoming golden brown, about 10 minutes. Stir in the spices of your choice. Remove it from the heat, and add it to the crust mixture in the large bowl along with the ricotta, salt, egg substitute or eggs, weed greens, and grated cheese. Mix everything together thoroughly, and spoon it into the prepared pan. Spread with sour cream. This is best done by dolloping the sour cream atop the filling, then using a spatula, or the back of a spoon, to smooth down and connect the dollops.

Bake the quiche in a preheated 375 degree oven for 50 to 55 minutes, or until it appears set almost all the way into the center, and has begun to brown slightly. It may crack, also; that’s OK. Remove it from the oven, and cool it on a rack for 20-30 minutes before serving. Refrigerate any leftovers. Yield: 8 to 12 servings.

CHICKWEED PIE

Makes 6 to 8 servings. Best served hot; it will keep one or two days in the refrigerator and can be reheated in the microwave.

One 10-inch pie crust

3 cups chopped chickweed

1 cup diced bacon

1/2 cup finely chopped onion

3 large eggs

1 1/2 cups sour cream

1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon grated nutmeg

Preheat oven to 325 degrees. Line a 10-inch pie dish with crust and make a raised border around the rim to prevent filling form overflowing during baking.

To prepare the chickweed, remove all leaves, twigs and root ends, reserving only the greenest leafiest parts. Rinse thoroughly in a colander and gently dry with paper towels. Bunch the chickweed together into a ball and chop with a sharp knife until reduced to a confetti texture. Measure, then put chickweed in a large bowl.

Fry diced bacon until it begins to brown, then add onion. Cook about 3 minutes, or until onion wilts. Using a slotted spoon, transfer bacon and onions to bowl with chickweed. Discard drippings.

In a separate bowl, beat eggs until lemon colored, then add sour cream, flour and nutmeg. Add egg mixture to chickweed, onions and bacon. Spread filling evenly in the pie shell and pat down firmly with a spoon. Bake 45 to 50 minutes, or until pie has set in the center and top looks golden.

(Adapted from Pennsylvania Dutch Country Cooking, by William Woys Weaver Abbeville Press, 1993. Used with author’s permission.)

DANDELION GREENS WITH COWPEAS

Makes 6 to 8 servings. The 14th century health guide Tacuinum Sanitatis shows a young woman gathering wild lettuce, which would have been cooked in a pot with legumes to make a healthful meal. This recipe is in that tradition. I like it not just because it is delicious and perfect on a cold, rainy day, but also because you can substitute any other wild spring green for the dandelion. If you have a bit of leftover ham, consider adding it to the stock for extra flavor.

3 cups cowpeas, also known as black-eyed peas (If you don’t like beans, leave them out and triple the rice instead)

3 tablespoons oil, bacon drippings or butter

2 cups of chopped onion

4 cups ham or other meat stock (I have used chicken stock instead)

1 cup short-grain rice

4 cups of chopped dandelion greens (or more, if you like)

Salt and pepper to taste

Grated parmesan cheese (optional)

Put cowpeas in a deep bowl, then add boiling water to cover them. Let cowpeas stand about 40 minutes, or until fully swollen. Drain and set aside.

Heat oil in a deep pan and add onion. Cover and cook over medium heat about 3 minutes. Add prepared cowpeas, stock and rice. Cook over medium heat 20 to 25 minutes, or until cowpeas are tender and rice is soft. Stir in chopped dandelion; when leaves turn bright green, remove pan from the heat, adjust seasonings and serve. If you like, scatter grated cheese on top.

(Printed with permission from The Herb Companion, www.herbcompanion.com)

Linden Staciokas has gardened in the Interior for more than two decades. Send gardening questions to her at dorking@acsalaska.net.