Last night I thinned my fall collards, lettuce and radish sowings, and then ate them for dinner. The baby collards were sauteed with garlic in sesame oil, and then deglazed with soy sauce and black wine vinegar. The lettuce and radish starts were tossed with Sungold cherry tomatoes in a light vinaigrette. Yum.
Some gardeners are stingy with their seeds, but I always sow heavily and then thin as the plants grow. Partially that's to assure a full crop, and partially it's because I've learned to really love eating my babies. In fact there are some vegetables, like arugula and pea vines, that I almost never eat any other way.
If you've got your own favorite thinnings to eat, I'd love to hear 'em. I'm sure there are some I've never tried.