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Modeled after a popular New York eatery, the groundbreaking technique turns usually thrown-out external lettuce greens into a luxurious herbaceous “mayonnaise”. It’s a ingenious approach to minimize leftovers while making a condiment tasty and versatile.

The Reason Use Outer Lettuce Leaves?

These outer greens are the plant’s natural packaging, shielding the delicate inside leaves. While composting produce scraps is a fundamental zero-waste practice, discovering new applications for them is additionally beneficial. Turning excess food into fertile soil avoids dump buildup, where it may emit greenhouse gases, a potent environmental concern.

This is rather innovative if you think over it: food rots and becomes that perfect growing medium to feed more plants, thus completing this loop and respecting nature’s process of growth.

However, with more than thirty percent surplus produce getting made than required, consuming valuable resources wisely is essential. Minimizing leftovers not only saves cash but also supports a more eco-friendly lifestyle.

The Herb-Infused Emulsion Recipe

This adaptable recipe functions with any type of salad greens and nuts. By using a entire egg, you eliminate the hassle to use up the leftover egg white. The result is a smooth, rich sauce that pairs beautifully with salads, roasted vegetables, grilled chicken, noodles, or rice.

Yields two

To Make the Herb Emulsion (Makes approximately 200g)

• 100g unsalted butter
• 50 grams external salad greens of two romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and thoroughly dried
• 20 grams shelled roasted nuts – white nuts such as cashews assist keep the bright color, but whatever seeds will do
• One small whole egg

To Make the Side

• Two little gem heads, halved longwise
• Cold-pressed oil, to taste
• Fresh lime juice or white-wine vinegar, to taste
• One small handful soft greens (such as chives), leaves picked intact, stems finely minced

Steps

First making the mayonnaise. Melt the fat in a small saucepan, add the external lettuce greens, place a lid and wilt for approximately 60 seconds, stirring a couple times, till they’ve wilted. Pour this mixture into a container of an immersion blender, include the pistachios and egg, then blend until creamy. As necessary, add more seeds to achieve the mayonnaise-like texture. Keep in a airtight container in the fridge for as long as 3 days.

For prepare the dish, sprinkle each lettuce half with olive oil and acid, then salt liberally. Dress with one zigzag drizzle of the green mayonnaise, then top with the greens. Place on two plates and serve immediately.