Greetings:
There are two plants everyone might consider getting a hold of in bulk which pretty much grow everywhere, can deal with drought and are far more nutritious than rice.
Quinoa
http://www.thedailyplate.com/nutriti...organic-quinoa
http://www.myfit.ca/mealplans/nutrie...y.asp?id=20035
And...
Amaranth
Leaves...
http://www.nutritiondata.com/facts/v...roducts/2304/2
Seeds...
http://www.elook.org/nutrition/grains/6575.html
Both have edible and very tasty leaves as well as superior quality seeds.
They are both simple to grow and quite lovely. My quinoa is drying right now and it is in shades of gold and red and blue!
Another plant you might consider, since it is tough as nails, has edible leaves as well as a brilliant nutritional complex is 'goji' or 'Chinese Wolfberry'. Lycium Chinense or Lycium barbarum (I can't tell the difference between the two myself...)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Wolfberry
They are fast growing, hardy from USDA Gardening Zones 2 to 10 and are really expensive at the health food stores. Go to a local health food and buy a small packet and you'll get more seeds than you can fathom. Simply swell them in water, mush the berry through a strainer, and viola. Hundreds of goji seeds ready for planting.
As an after thought...Russian kale can NOT be beat as it will thrive under snow even!
http://rawveg.info/kale.html
These are all really simple plants for a new gardener.....