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Inspired by an acclaimed New York restaurant, this innovative method transforms often-discarded external salad leaves into a velvety herbaceous emulsion. This is a ingenious way to cut down on leftovers while producing something tasty and adaptable.

The Reason Use External Salad Greens?

Those outer leaves serve as nature’s natural packaging, guarding the delicate inner leaves. While composting vegetable scraps is a basic zero-waste practice, finding creative applications for these parts is additionally beneficial. Converting excess ingredients into rich soil prevents dump accumulation, where it may release methane, a powerful climate issue.

This is quite radical when you think about it: food decomposes and transforms into the perfect soil to feed further crops, thereby completing this loop and honoring the cycle of life.

Yet, with more than 30% extra produce getting produced than needed, consuming precious ingredients wisely becomes crucial. Minimizing waste not only saves money but also supports the more eco-friendly lifestyle.

The Herb-Infused Emulsion Recipe

This versatile recipe functions with any type of salad greens and nuts. By using one whole egg, you eliminate the need to repurpose an extra egg white. This result is an creamy, rich sauce that pairs perfectly with salads, grilled vegetables, seared poultry, pasta, or grains.

Serves two

For the Green Emulsion (Makes about 200 grams)

• 100g unsalted butter
• 50 grams external salad leaves of 2 romaine or butter lettuce, rinsed and dried
• 20g shelled salted nuts – light-colored nuts like cashews assist maintain the vivid color, though any seeds will do
• 1 small whole egg

For the Side

• 2 little gem heads, split longwise
• Extra-virgin oil, to taste
• Lemon juice or apple cider vinegar, to taste
• One generous handful soft herbs (like parsley), leaves picked whole, stems finely chopped

Instructions

First making the mayonnaise. Melt the butter in one small pot, add the external lettuce greens, place a lid and cook for approximately a minute, stirring a couple times, until they have wilted. Pour the contents into the jug of a immersion processor, add the pistachios and whole egg, then process until smooth. As necessary, add extra nuts to get a mayonnaise-like texture. Keep in a sealed container in the fridge for as long as 3 days.

To prepare the dish, sprinkle each lettuce portion with olive oil and lemon juice, then season liberally. Coat with one zigzag drizzle of the herb mayonnaise, then scatter with the greens. Arrange on two plates and serve right away.