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Inspired by a well-known New York eatery, the creative method converts often-discarded external lettuce leaves into an velvety herbaceous “mayonnaise”. This is an ingenious way to cut down on food waste while creating a condiment delicious and versatile.

The Reason Use External Lettuce Leaves?

Those outer greens serve as the plant’s natural wrapping, guarding the delicate inside lettuce. While recycling vegetable trimmings is one fundamental sustainable practice, discovering creative applications for these parts is additionally beneficial. Turning excess food into fertile compost avoids dump buildup, where they may emit greenhouse gases, which is a powerful climate concern.

This is rather innovative if you think about it: produce decomposes and transforms into that ideal soil to feed more crops, thus completing the loop and honoring the process of growth.

Yet, with over thirty percent extra produce being made compared to required, consuming precious resources efficiently becomes crucial. Minimizing leftovers not only conserves money but also supports a increasingly sustainable lifestyle.

This Green Emulsion Method

This versatile recipe functions with any type of salad greens and nuts. By using one entire egg, one eliminate any need to repurpose the leftover egg white. The result is a smooth, rich sauce that pairs perfectly with greens, roasted vegetables, grilled chicken, noodles, or grains.

Serves two

For the Green “Mayonnaise” (Yields about 200g)

• 100 grams butter
• 50 grams outer salad greens of two romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and thoroughly dried
• 20 grams peeled roasted pistachios – white nuts like cashews help maintain the bright green, but any seeds can do
• One medium entire egg

For the Side

• Two romaine or butter heads, halved longwise
• Cold-pressed olive oil, as needed
• Fresh lime juice or apple cider vinegar, as desired
• 1 generous bunch fresh herbs (like parsley), sprigs picked whole, stems finely minced

Steps

First making the mayonnaise. Heat the fat in one medium saucepan, toss in the outer salad greens, cover and cook for approximately a minute, stirring once or twice, until they’ve wilted. Transfer the mixture into the container of a stick blender, add the pistachios and whole egg, then process until creamy. As necessary, add more nuts to get a thick texture. Keep in a airtight jar in the fridge for as long as 3 days.

For prepare the salad, drizzle each gem portion with olive oil and lemon juice, then season liberally. Coat with a zigzag drizzle of the herb mayonnaise, then top with the herbs. Arrange on two dishes and enjoy right away.