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Drawing from a popular NYC eatery, this innovative technique turns often-discarded external salad greens into an velvety herbaceous emulsion. This is a smart approach to minimize leftovers while producing a condiment tasty and versatile.

The Reason Repurpose Outer Salad Greens?

Those outer leaves serve as the plant’s protective packaging, shielding the delicate inner leaves. Although composting produce scraps is one fundamental sustainable habit, discovering creative applications for them is additionally beneficial. Turning excess ingredients into fertile compost avoids landfill accumulation, where they may release greenhouse gases, which is a powerful climate concern.

This is quite radical if you consider over it: food decomposes and transforms into the ideal soil to nourish further crops, thus completing this loop and respecting nature’s process of life.

However, given over 30% extra produce being made than needed, consuming precious ingredients wisely is essential. Reducing leftovers not only saves money but also supports the increasingly sustainable way of living.

This Green Emulsion Method

This versatile formula functions with any type of lettuce and seeds. Through incorporating one whole egg, you avoid the need to use up the leftover white. The outcome is a smooth, nutty sauce that works beautifully with greens, roasted veggies, grilled poultry, pasta, or grains.

Serves 2

To Make the Herb Emulsion (Makes approximately 200 grams)

• 100g unsalted butter
• 50 grams external lettuce greens from 2 little gems, rinsed and thoroughly dried
• 20 grams peeled salted pistachios – light-colored nuts like cashews help maintain the bright green, though whatever seeds can do
• One small whole egg

For the Side

• Two little gem lettuces, split lengthways
• Extra-virgin oil, as needed
• Fresh lime juice or apple cider vinegar, to taste
• One small bunch soft herbs (such as chives), sprigs picked whole, stalks finely chopped

Steps

First preparing the mayonnaise. Melt the butter in a medium pot, toss in the external lettuce greens, place a lid and cook for about a minute, mixing once or twice, until they’ve wilted. Transfer this contents into a container of an immersion blender, add the pistachios and egg, then blend till creamy. If needed, add extra seeds to achieve the mayonnaise-like consistency. Keep in an airtight jar in the refrigerator for up to three days.

To prepare the dish, sprinkle each lettuce half with oil and lemon juice, then salt generously. Coat with a zigzag pattern of the green mayonnaise, then top with the herbs. Place on 2 plates and serve immediately.