CLEVELAND, Ohio - The first tender green salad from your very own lettuce patch is the well-deserved reward of hope, hard work, faith, diligence, and more often than not, the fatalism and rigor of Mr. McGregor.

Remember that ornery Scots farmer who was always at odds about the fate of his gardens produce with that scamp, Peter Rabbit? Well, sharing is caring, and hopefully youve worked it out with your own lagomorphs to equitably divide the bounty.

So now the issue is how many salads, as good as they are, can you possibly eat? In the interest of expanding your green horizons, explore the recipes below. They showcase familiar, and perhaps some new-to-you varieties available from local farmers markets in a myriad of flavors and colors from Rothko-esque maroon and deepest green to Monet-like pink and celadon.

Yes, there are some salads, too intriguing to be left out, but theres also some lettuce-based apps, a wrap, and even a soup that should hold your interest until the last leafy plant has bolted. Then you and your bunnies can together turn to the next tempting harvest in the garden.

Green Goddess. (Beth Segal)

Green Goddess Cobb salad

A cornucopia of good things from the garden and beyond, this composed salad takes a little extra work, but the result is a one-dish meal that dazzles in presentation and taste, with a creamy tarragon-rich dressing that would elevate any salad from the mundane to the divine.

4 Little Gem, red Bibb, or other small lettuces, leaves separated

1-2 Belgian endives, thinly sliced

1 cup sugar-snap peas, sliced in half

1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved or quartered, depending on size

1 rotisserie chicken, skin removed, meat torn into bite-size pieces

red onion, thinly sliced

1 avocado, thinly sliced (reserve for dressing below)

1 ounce pancetta, prosciutto or Serrano ham

Green goddess dressing (see below)

Heat a small dry skillet and cook pancetta 4-5 minutes, turning once, until meat is brown and crisp.

Drain on paper towel, set aside.

Arrange lettuce on platter. Drizzle with half the dressing and season with salt and freshly ground pepper.

Arrange onion, snap peas, chicken, tomatoes and remaining avocado as desired on lettuce.

Top with remaining dressing, then crumbled pancetta. Serve with panache.

Adapted from Bon Appetit

Green Goddess dressing

3 scallions, chopped

cup fresh tarragon leaves, with tender stems (packed) OR 1 tbsp. dried tarragon

2 tbsp. fresh cilantro

2 tbsp. fresh parsley

cup olive oil

2 tbsp. white-wine vinegar

2 tbsp. plain yogurt

Puree scallions, herbs, avocado, oil, vinegar and yogurt in a blender or food processor until smooth.

Thin dressing with a little more vinegar (up to 1 teaspoon) or water to a cream-like consistency.

Add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Heidi and Susan and Sashas salad 2.0

Forget almost everything you know about traditional salads. This bottoms-up approach may become your new normal. Refined through three generations of inspired cooks, the technique teases every bit of flavor from your other ingredients first, then adds the lettuce, preserving all the delicate texture and crispness of the fragile leaves until the very last moment. There are no quantities here; combine ingredients to your liking, tasting as you go. Add just about anything you would put in a traditional salad. This universal recipe will embrace it.

In the bottom of a large serving bowl, combine finely chopped garlic with an aggressive amount of kosher salt.

Add tomatoes and/or cucumber and let sit at least 5 minutes to release juices and marinate.

Add fresh corn kernels, sweet peppers, pickled onions, etc. and a protein (diced cooked chicken, poached shrimp, chickpeas, etc.) if you like.

Wash and thoroughly dry lettuce. Try a mix of more delicate varieties, butter lettuce or red leaf, with more assertive radicchio or elegant treviso. Wrap and refrigerate to keep fresh if not using right away. Tear into 2-inch pieces, layer over other ingredients and drizzle with good olive oil, adding 1 tbsp. at a time to taste. Now would be a good time to add crumbled feta or chevre, if desired.

Toss to combine ingredients, being careful not to bruise the lettuce. Taste again, and finally add an acid, a little at a time (consider a wine vinegar/lemon juice combination - just enough to add freshness and piquancy).

Toss gently once more and serve to acclaim.

Courtesy of Sasha Callahan.

Stuffed Endive with herbed goat-cheese appetizer

Crisp and pleasantly bitter, elegant ovals of Belgian endive are the perfect vessel for a herby goat-cheese filling. This quick and easy recipe gives you an irresistible opportunity to show off (almost) your entire repertoire of cosseted home-grown herbs.

3 ounces goat cheese, crumbled

1 ounce cream cheese (OR 1 tbsp. heavy cream)

1 lemon to make 2 tsp. fresh juice and 1 tsp. lemon zest

6 tablespoons mixed fresh herbs: Chives, parsley, tarragon, marjoram, oregano, thyme, rosemary, etc. (not cilantro)

2 heads Belgian endive

Separate endive into leaves.

Combine remaining ingredients, add salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Spoon mixture equally into leaves, top with remaining herbs, serve with alacrity. Adapted from Southern Living

Lettuce wraps with spicy stir-fried pork

2 tbsp. vegetable oil, divided

1 garlic clove, minced

3-4 tsp. hot chili paste (sambal oelek), depending on level of heat desired

1 pound ground pork

2 tsp. finely grated lime zest

cup fresh lime juice (4-6 limes)

2 tbsp. fish sauce (nam pla OR nuoc nam)

1 tbsp. brown sugar (packed)

small red onion, finely chopped

1 cup fresh mint (coarsely chopped)

1 head butter lettuce

Separate lettuce into leaves. Heat 1 tbsp. oil in large skillet over medium-high heat.

Add garlic and 2 tsp. chili paste. Cook, stirring constantly, for about 1 minute.

Add pork, breaking up with spoon.

Heat 4-6 minutes, until pork is cooked through. Set aside to cool.

Whisk lime juice, lime zest, fish sauce, brown sugar, remaining oil and remaining chili paste in small bowl. Reserve half for dipping sauce. Add other half to small saucepan with teaspoon cornstarch and stir until cornstarch is dissolved and mixture is slightly thickened.

Cool slightly and add pork mixture, mint leaves and chopped onion.

Spoon mixture into lettuce leaves. Roll leaves around filling, dunk into chili sauce, eat with relish.

Lettuce pesto

This recipe is perfectly delicious and legitimate in its own right, but it also admirably addresses a situation too often encountered in a bountiful lettuce season - the Wilt. Were not talking about reversion to the primeval ooze, but lettuce that has only recently lost its dewy looks and crisp crunch. The pesto can be made with any lettuce except iceberg (because of its high water content). Try something assertive. Peppery arugula adds personality mixed in with sweeter red tip or even a handful of tender mche. Add herbs; almost any will add a pleasant complexity. This recipe recommends basil, which will round out the flavors for those who seek the familiar pesto of yore.

4 cups lettuce leaves, torn into 2-inch pieces (large stems and ribs removed)

cup basil, large stems removed

1 large garlic clove, minced

cup toasted pine nuts or walnuts

cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

- cup olive oil

Add lettuce, basil, garlic, nuts, cheese, tsp. salt, and tsp. freshly ground pepper to a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped.

Slowly stream in cup oil. Add more oil, 1 tbsp. at a time, if needed to achieve desired consistency.

Use over pasta, as a pizza sauce, appetizer spread, or dip with raw or roasted vegetables in a salad dressing.

Adapted from Fresh Chef

Lettuce soup. (Beth Segal)

Lettuce soup

Another, equally lovely fate for lettuce thats seen slightly better days, this recipe is, yes, a leap of faith, but take it with me. The resulting soup, made with a mix of romaine and spinach, has a delicate but definite flavor of springtime. The texture is creamy and soothing. Enjoy its affirmative nature hot or cold; both are equally buoying in taste and spirit.

1 cup chopped onions, scallions and/or shallots

1 garlic clove, chopped

3 tbsp. unsalted butter

tsp. nutmeg

1 cup medium diced peeled potato

3 cups chicken stock or water

8 cups coarsely chopped lettuce leaves (3/4 lb.)

Cook onion mixture and garlic in butter in a medium-large saucepan over medium-low heat until softened, 3 to 5 minutes.

Add nutmeg, salt and freshly ground pepper to taste.

Mix in lettuce and saute to cook down to almost half its volume.

Stir in potato and stock and bring to a boil. Reduce heat and simmer, covered, about 15 minutes, until potato is very tender.

Carefully blend soup with an immersion blender stick, and enjoy hot, cold or any temperature in between.

Adapted from Epicurious

Bonus recipe: Fern Avenue salad dressing

See the rest here:

Lettuce 2.0: In and out of the salad bowl - cleveland.com