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Modeled after a well-known New York eatery, this groundbreaking technique converts often-discarded outer salad greens into a luxurious green “mayonnaise”. This is a smart way to cut down on kitchen waste while making a condiment delicious and flexible.

Why Use External Lettuce Greens?

Those outer greens are nature’s protective wrapping, shielding the tender inside leaves. While composting produce trimmings is one fundamental zero-waste practice, finding creative applications for them is additionally impactful. Turning surplus food into rich compost avoids dump buildup, where it may release methane, which is a potent climate issue.

This is rather innovative when you consider about it: produce rots and transforms into that ideal growing medium to nourish further plants, thereby completing the cycle and respecting nature’s process of growth.

Yet, given over 30% surplus produce getting produced compared to required, consuming valuable ingredients efficiently becomes essential. Minimizing leftovers not only conserves cash but also promotes a increasingly eco-friendly lifestyle.

This Herb-Infused Emulsion Recipe

This versatile recipe works with whatever variety of salad greens and nuts. Through incorporating a entire egg, you avoid any need to use up an extra egg white. The outcome is an creamy, nutty dressing that pairs perfectly with salads, grilled vegetables, seared poultry, pasta, or rice.

Serves 2

For the Herb “Mayonnaise” (Makes approximately 200g)

• 100 grams unsalted butter
• 50 grams external lettuce leaves from two romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and dried
• 20 grams shelled roasted pistachios – white seeds like pine nuts help maintain a vivid green, but any nuts will do
• One small whole egg

To Make the Side

• Two little gem lettuces, split longwise
• Extra-virgin oil, as needed
• Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, as desired
• One generous handful fresh herbs (such as chives), leaves picked whole, stems finely minced

Steps

Begin by making the mayonnaise. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, toss in the outer salad leaves, place a lid and wilt for about a minute, mixing a couple times, till they’ve wilted. Transfer this mixture into the jug of a stick processor, include the nuts and egg, then process till creamy. If needed, add extra seeds to get the thick texture. Store in an sealed jar in the fridge for as long as three days.

To prepare the dish, sprinkle each lettuce half with oil and acid, then season liberally. Coat with a zigzag drizzle of the herb emulsion, then scatter with the greens. Place on two plates and serve immediately.