Salad! Oh, lettuce count the ways…
Lettuce isn’t boring. You know it too, in your heart of hearts. How can it be, with such a grandiose range of textures, shapes, morphologies, and yes, flavors? Latuca sativa has over 100 subspecies, and can be classified into 12 distinct botanical types based on their physical characteristics. In agriculture, they’ve been divided into 6 main cultivars, or varities selected and continuously propogated based on desirable traits. Care to meet them?
What do we grow?
At StonesThrow, we aim to have salad crops and greens every week, cultivating around 25 different varieties throughout the season. From red leaf to summer crisp, romaine to butterhead, there’s a lettuce leaf for everyone. While we focus on providing a plethora of loose leaf type varieties during the bookends of the season, the height of it is abound with more head varieties. Check our Instagram on Saturdays to see what’s ready to eat!
Sweet little seedlings….
Care and Storage
Correctly storing your lettuce makes a massive difference in prolonged quality, texture, and flavor. So, take the time to tuck those sweet leaves in before you close the fridge!
Loose leaf - Let ‘em breathe
Give your greens a quick cold bath! Not only does it help with a little crisping, removing them from the original bag they were packed in avoides quick wilting and slime.
Spin your loose leaf to remove excess moisture, which also contributes to deterioration. If you don’t have a salad spinner, drain in a colander, place on a clean kitchen towel, and gently pat dry.
You can either keep them in a salad spinner, store them in a sealable container layered with paper towels, or reuse our provided bag. Just be sure you dry the bag and pop in a paper towel to wick excess moisture!
Head - Leave ‘em be
Head lettuce varieties last longer intact until you are ready to eat them. Simply wrap in a dish towel or place in a loose cloth or plastic bag, and nestle in your crisper drawer.
You can also opt to remove the leaves, spin and store as you would loose leaf.
Head looking sad? Revive by trimming and submerging the stem in some water like a bouquet!
Need some recipe inspiration? Here are some of our favorites!
-
Charring the orange adds a lovely bitter element to this dressing that would pair well early and late season lettuce varieties alike. Feeling creative? Swap the orange for a lemon, and the tarragon for dill. Use thinly sliced fennel bulb instead of peas, or roasted broccoli instead of radishes. This salad is your oyster!
Ingredients:
5-6 ounces of greens, roughly torn if large
1 bunch of spring radishes, thinly sliced
2 c. snap peas, thinly sliced at an angle
1 orange
2 tbsp. minced tarragon
1 shallot, roughly minced
1 clove garlic, roughly minced
1 tbsp. raw ginger, roughly minced
2 tsp. honey
1 tsp. whole grain mustard
1/4 c. extra-virgin olive oil
1/4 c. tarragon or white wine vinegar
kosher salt to taste
fresh ground black pepper
Procedure:
Slice your orange in half, remove seeds, and drizzle the exposed sides with a little olive oil. Sear on a grill or in a cast iron pan until well-charred
Meanwhile, combine your shallot, garlic, and ginger with the vinegar, honey, and salt. Set aside to gently pickle.
Pull the orange off and place into a blender with the nuts pulsing until no large pieces remain.
Add the pickle mixture, mustard, and tarragon and blend until smooth.
Now you have two options. You can slowly add the oil while blending to emulsify the dressing (make it creamy), or transfer to a mason jar, add the oil, and shake for the classic vinaigrette.
Season with kosher salt and pepper to taste.
Toss your veggies with your dressing and garnish with fennel fronds and toasted almonds for a rounded out dish.
-
An ode to the colorful west coast of Italy, highlighting the star of the Ligurian region: anchovies. Vegan? Don’t like anchovies? Replace with umeboshi paste, a touch of miso, or leave them out!
Ingredients:
2 medium romaine heads
1 lemon, zest and juice
2 cloves garlic
1/2 c. pine nuts (walnuts, pecans, and almonds all work as facsimiles)
1 tbsp. fennel seeds
1/2 c. cold pressed extra virgin olive oil
1 can anchovies packed in olive oil
1 bunch parsley
1/4 c. castelvetrano olives (or your favorite meaty olive!)
2 tsp. chili flakes
salt and pepper to taste
Procedure:
Prep your grill to medium-high heat, and rub with a cut potato to make it non-stick. Slice your romaine heads long-ways in half.
Grate garlic and shallot into a bowl, and add lemon juice and lemon zest. Set aside.
Toast your nuts and fennel seeds in a pan on medium-high heat until fragrant. Once cool, pulse in a food processor or finely chop by hand.
Finely chop parsley, 4-6 anchovies, and olives, and add to alliums and lemon, along with nuts, olive oil, and chile flakes. Stir well and season to taste.
Brush the romaine with the oil from the packed anchovies. If there’s not enough, just drizzle on a little olive oil. Season with pepper.
Grill romaine hearts, about 2-3 minutes each side
Plate and serve with the gremolata. Add some parmesean or pecorino shavings if you’re feeling adventurous.
-
It’s creamy. It’s zingy. It goes with any green and is a compliment to any meal. Add crispy chickpeas, roast chicken, or a tofu cutlet and you’ve got dinner.
Ingredients:
5-6 ounces greens of choice (serving for 2)
1/2 c. full-fat yogurt (vegan alternatives work too!)
2 tbsp. tahini
1 garlic clove, grated
1/2 - 1 serrano chile or jalapeño (sample for heat)
1/2 small red onion
2 tbsp. rice or white wine vinegar
2 tbsp. fresh lemon juice
1 tbsp. lemon zest
1 tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 c. roughly chopped herbs (basil, dill, parsley, cilantro, you name it)
toasted sunflower seeds for garnish
kosher salt to taste
Procedure:
Thinly slice onion and chile, and combine with with vinegar in a bowl. Let sit 10 minutes.
In your serving bowl, combine greens, torn if larger head variety, and herbs. Toss evenly.
Combine grated garlic, yogurt, tahini, olive oil, and lemon juice. Whisk unti smooth. Add quick pickled chiles and onion and give another stir. Season with salt to taste.
If serving right away, toss dressing with greens. If you know you’ll have leftovers, serve by plating a couple spoonfuls of dressing on the plate first, top with greens/herbs, and drizzle with a touch more dressing.
Finish with sunflower seeds.
