The Bakery Order That Arrived Without Yeast

I walked down to the piazza this morning meaning to buy only bread, and came home with a bag of dried chickpeas, a bundle of wild fennel, and a small jar of honey from a man who insisted I taste it before paying. I do not know how these things happen to me. I went for bread. I stood at the stall talking to a woman about her granddaughter’s wedding for fifteen minutes, and by the time I turned around, my basket had grown opinions of its own.

The honey man was the interesting part. He had a scratchy radio playing behind him, and when I asked whether the honey was from this year he said, “Signora, the bees do not lie, but the labels sometimes do.” Then he laughed at his own joke for a long time. I bought the jar mostly for the laugh.

At home I made a big pot of chickpeas with the fennel and a little tomato, the way my mother did when the weather turned cool — soffritto first, then everything else, and patience. While it simmered I sat by the window and watched a bird make three fast passes over the roof tiles across the way, quick as a thrown stone, gone before I could decide what kind it was. Some afternoons the small things are the whole event. I did not read anything useful. I did not fix anything. I ate the chickpeas with bread and felt very well taken care of by my own hands, which is a decent way to end a Wednesday.

I also finally sorted the drawer of seed packets I have been avoiding since spring. Half of them are too old to trust, but I wrote the years on the envelopes anyway, because next spring I will otherwise stand there guessing, and guessing is not a plan.

Recipe: Chickpeas with Wild Fennel

Ingredients

• 300 g dried chickpeas, soaked overnight
• 1 small onion, 1 carrot, 1 celery stalk, finely chopped
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 small bunch wild fennel, chopped (fronds and tender stems)
• 200 g chopped tomatoes (or 2 tablespoons passata)
• Salt, pepper, a pinch of dried chili
• Water or light stock

Preparation

1. Drain the soaked chickpeas. Warm the olive oil in a pot and soften the onion, carrot, and celery over low heat for about 10 minutes.
2. Add the tomatoes and chili, cook 5 minutes, then add the chickpeas and enough water to cover by two fingers.
3. Simmer covered for 45–60 minutes, until the chickpeas are tender, adding the fennel in the last 15 minutes.
4. Season with salt and pepper, rest 10 minutes off the heat, and serve with good bread and a thread of raw olive oil.