I ripped this recipe off from a dish in the Whole Foods cold salad buffet, which goes for like $6 a pound. When I discovered it, I fell in love with it - the textures and colors are amazing. My only problem (have you yet to realize that I have a problem with everything?) was that, like all of their prepared foods, it was too greazy. Still, I was always excited when they had a fresh tray of it and bummed when they didn’t have any out. Then one day I found the ingredients they used for it in their produce section. I’m not gonna lie to you, this is health food and it’s not gonna fill you up. You’ll probably need half a sandwich or some fruit to round out your lunch. Or serve as a fancy appetizer salad.

Makes one large serving.

• Half package of Sproutman’s sweet pea shoots (Sproutman products are available at most natural food markets)
• Half package of Sproutman’s crunchy sprouts
• One grated carrot
• Small handful of raw unsalted sunflower seeds
• One to two teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Juice of half a lemon
• Optional: Tomatoes and cucumber

Throw everything into a big bowl. Season with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Toss. Eat. Feel smug.

Cost: Appx $3.35. Not that expensive. More than your average run of the mill garden salad that you’d make at home, but still cheaper than going out and paying for those shitty bodega salads in the stream trays with the dressing in a vat with a ladle.

Cost breakdown:
Pea shoots $2 (whole package $4)
Sprouted peas and beans $1 (whole package $2)
Carrot - like $.10
Sunflower seeds $.25? (I bought a giant bag of Whole Foods generic brand sunflower seeds for like three bones)