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Inspired by a well-known NYC restaurant, the groundbreaking method turns often-discarded outer salad greens into an luxurious green “mayonnaise”. This is a ingenious approach to minimize leftovers while producing a condiment delicious and flexible.

Why Use Outer Salad Greens?

These external leaves serve as the plant’s natural packaging, shielding the delicate inner lettuce. Although composting vegetable scraps is one fundamental sustainable practice, discovering creative applications for them is even more beneficial. Turning excess ingredients into rich compost prevents landfill accumulation, where it can emit greenhouse gases, which is a powerful environmental concern.

This is rather innovative when you consider over it: produce decomposes and transforms into that perfect growing medium to feed further crops, thus completing the cycle and respecting the cycle of growth.

Yet, given more than 30% surplus produce getting produced than needed, using valuable resources wisely becomes essential. Minimizing waste not only conserves cash but also promotes the increasingly eco-friendly way of living.

This Herb-Infused “Mayonnaise” Method

The versatile formula works with whatever type of lettuce and seeds. Through using a whole egg, one eliminate any need to repurpose an leftover egg white. This outcome is an creamy, nutty dressing that pairs perfectly with greens, roasted vegetables, grilled poultry, noodles, or rice.

Yields two

To Make the Herb Emulsion (Yields about 200 grams)

• 100g unsalted butter
• 50g outer salad greens from two romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and thoroughly dried
• 20g shelled roasted pistachios – light-colored seeds like cashews assist maintain a bright green, though whatever seeds can work
• 1 small entire egg

For the Salad

• 2 romaine or butter heads, split lengthways
• Extra-virgin oil, to taste
• Lemon juice or white-wine vinegar, to taste
• 1 generous handful fresh greens (like chervil), sprigs left whole, stalks thinly chopped

Steps

Begin by making the emulsion. Melt the butter in a small saucepan, add the outer salad greens, place a lid and cook for approximately 60 seconds, mixing a couple times, until they’ve wilted. Pour the mixture into a jug of an stick blender, include the nuts and whole egg, then blend until creamy. If needed, add more nuts to get the thick consistency. Store in an sealed container in the fridge for up to three days.

For assemble the salad, drizzle each lettuce portion with olive oil and acid, then season liberally. Coat with one zigzag drizzle of the green emulsion, then top with the herbs. Place on two plates and enjoy immediately.