🔗 Share this article

Drawing from a well-known New York eatery, the groundbreaking method converts usually thrown-out outer lettuce greens into a smooth herbaceous emulsion. It’s an brilliant approach to cut down on food waste while making something tasty and versatile.

Why Repurpose External Salad Leaves?

These external greens are nature’s natural wrapping, guarding the tender inner leaves. Although composting vegetable trimmings is a basic sustainable practice, discovering new uses for them is even more impactful. Converting excess food into rich soil avoids landfill buildup, where it can release methane, which is a potent environmental issue.

This is rather radical if you think about it: produce decomposes and transforms into the perfect soil to nourish further plants, thereby closing the loop and honoring nature’s cycle of growth.

Yet, given more than 30% surplus produce getting produced compared to required, consuming precious resources efficiently becomes essential. Minimizing leftovers not only conserves money but also supports the more eco-friendly way of living.

The Green Emulsion Recipe

The adaptable recipe functions with whatever type of lettuce and seeds. By using a whole egg, you eliminate the hassle to repurpose the leftover white. The result is a creamy, nutty sauce that works beautifully with greens, roasted vegetables, seared chicken, pasta, or grains.

Serves two

For the Herb Emulsion (Makes approximately 200g)

• 100g butter
• 50 grams external lettuce greens from two romaine or butter lettuce, washed and thoroughly dried
• 20 grams peeled salted nuts – white nuts such as blanched almonds help maintain the vivid color, though any nuts can work
• 1 medium entire egg

To Make the Salad

• Two little gem heads, halved lengthways
• Cold-pressed olive oil, as needed
• Fresh lime juice or apple cider vinegar, to taste
• One small handful fresh greens (such as parsley), sprigs picked intact, stems thinly minced

Instructions

First making the mayonnaise. Melt the fat in a medium saucepan, add the external salad greens, cover and cook for approximately a minute, stirring once or twice, until they have softened. Transfer this mixture into a jug of an stick processor, add the nuts and egg, then blend until creamy. If needed, add more nuts to achieve the mayonnaise-like texture. Keep in a airtight container in the fridge for as long as three days.

To assemble the salad, drizzle each lettuce half with olive oil and lemon juice, then salt liberally. Dress with one zigzag pattern of the green emulsion, then scatter with the greens. Place on 2 plates and enjoy immediately.