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Inspired by a popular New York restaurant, this creative method turns usually thrown-out external salad greens into a luxurious green emulsion. It’s a smart way to reduce kitchen waste while creating something flavorful and adaptable.

The Reason Use Outer Lettuce Leaves?

Those outer greens are the plant’s protective wrapping, shielding the tender inside lettuce. While composting produce scraps is a fundamental zero-waste habit, finding creative uses for these parts is additionally beneficial. Turning surplus food into fertile compost avoids landfill buildup, where it can release greenhouse gases, a potent environmental concern.

This is rather innovative when you consider over it: food rots and becomes the ideal growing medium to feed more crops, thus closing this cycle and respecting nature’s cycle of growth.

However, given over thirty percent surplus food being made than needed, using precious ingredients efficiently becomes crucial. Minimizing leftovers not only saves cash but also promotes a increasingly eco-friendly lifestyle.

The Green “Mayonnaise” Method

This adaptable recipe functions with whatever type of lettuce and seeds. Through incorporating a whole egg, one avoid the need to use up the leftover white. This outcome is a smooth, nutty sauce that pairs perfectly with greens, grilled veggies, seared poultry, noodles, or rice.

Yields 2

To Make the Herb “Mayonnaise” (Makes about 200 grams)

• 100g butter
• 50g outer salad greens of two romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and thoroughly dried
• 20 grams shelled roasted nuts – white nuts such as pine nuts assist keep the bright green, but any nuts can do
• 1 small entire egg

To Make the Salad

• 2 romaine or butter heads, split lengthways
• Cold-pressed oil, to taste
• Lemon juice or white-wine vinegar, to taste
• One generous bunch soft greens (such as parsley), leaves picked whole, stalks thinly chopped

Steps

First making the emulsion. Melt the fat in a medium pot, add the external lettuce greens, place a lid and cook for about a minute, mixing once or twice, till they’ve wilted. Transfer this contents into the jug of an immersion processor, include the pistachios and whole egg, then process till creamy. As necessary, add extra seeds to get the thick consistency. Keep in an sealed container in the refrigerator for up to 3 days.

To prepare the salad, sprinkle each lettuce half with oil and acid, then season liberally. Coat with a zigzag pattern of the green emulsion, then top with the greens. Arrange on 2 plates and enjoy right away.