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Inspired by a popular New York eatery, the creative technique transforms typically wasted external salad leaves into an velvety herbaceous “mayonnaise”. This is a smart way to cut down on leftovers while making a condiment tasty and versatile.

Why Use Outer Lettuce Greens?

Those external leaves serve as the plant’s protective packaging, guarding the delicate inner leaves. Although recycling vegetable scraps is one fundamental zero-waste habit, discovering creative uses for these parts is additionally impactful. Converting surplus food into rich soil avoids dump accumulation, where they can emit greenhouse gases, which is a potent environmental concern.

This is rather radical when you think over it: food rots and becomes the ideal growing medium to feed further plants, thus closing this loop and respecting nature’s cycle of life.

Yet, with more than 30% extra produce being produced than required, using valuable resources efficiently becomes crucial. Reducing leftovers not only conserves money but also supports the more sustainable way of living.

This Green Emulsion Recipe

This versatile recipe works with any variety of salad greens and nuts. Through incorporating a entire egg, one avoid any hassle to use up the leftover white. This result is a creamy, nutty dressing that works beautifully with salads, roasted vegetables, grilled chicken, noodles, or grains.

Yields two

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

• 100 grams butter
• 50 grams external lettuce greens of two little gems, washed and dried
• 20g peeled roasted nuts – white nuts such as pine nuts assist keep the bright color, but whatever nuts can work
• 1 medium whole egg

To Make the Salad

• Two romaine or butter heads, split lengthways
• Cold-pressed olive oil, as needed
• Fresh lime juice or white-wine vinegar, to taste
• One generous handful fresh greens (like chervil), leaves picked intact, stems finely chopped

Steps

Begin by making the mayonnaise. Heat the butter in one small pot, add the outer salad greens, place a lid and wilt for about a minute, mixing once or twice, till they’ve wilted. Pour the mixture into a jug of an stick processor, add the nuts and whole egg, then process until smooth. As necessary, incorporate extra seeds to get the mayonnaise-like consistency. Store in a airtight container in the refrigerator for up to three days.

For assemble the salad, sprinkle each lettuce portion with oil and acid, then salt generously. Dress with a zigzag drizzle of the green mayonnaise, then top with the greens. Place on two dishes and enjoy immediately.