A plethora of lettuce
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Somehow the stock-taking went awry and we found ourselves with a plethora of lettuce. As the buyer-in, I was somewhat on the defensive and said that we actually eat rather a lot of lettuce most of the time, and proceeded to tear off leaves and eat them.
I really like lettuce – ‘very soporific’ said Beatrix Potter in ‘The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies – and we were soon both chomping lettuce as though having grown enormous incisors and long furry ears and cute little scuts.
Image from The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies by Beatrix Potter
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Lettuce – well, the Romaine or Cos lettuce or possibly wild lettuce, depending on which source you care to rely on - was believed by the Ancient Egyptians to be an aphrodisiac and the fertility god Min was thought to gain his sexual energy through its consumption.
On the other hand, the Ancient Greeks served it at the end of banquets as an aid to digestion, to calm the diners and help them to sleep. Different applications for different appetites!
Image from The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies by Beatrix Potter
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
Nonetheless, we still had a surfeit of the crisp green leaves, so I suggested lettuce soup. I’ve never made or eaten such a soup, but it sounded a reasonable proposition, so Barry set to and made a large pot of leek and lettuce soup, which was pronounced delicious and definitely a recipe to be repeated.
In the process, we discovered an excess of leeks, so the next day we enjoyed leek, potato and celery soup. We would not normally be eating soup in late June, but it was most enjoyable, especially as the weather was unseasonably chilly. It was so nice to have potatoes again, as we haven't eaten them for a long time.
Image from The Tale of the Flopsy Bunnies by Beatrix Potter
Image courtesy Wikimedia Commons
I never thought of making soup with lettuce, but your leek and lettuce soup might be something to try! And as for not eating soup in summer, I really enjoy soups year around!!
ReplyDeleteOn the quite rare hot days/weeks we have, soup seems too much - silly, really.
DeleteLeek potato and celery soup actually sounds delicious. Each ingredient has shape, taste and bulk. But cooking lettuce might be like cooking thin paper.
ReplyDeleteIt was - the celery certainly added a distinctive flavour.
DeleteCos lettuce is my favourite type, with oakleaf and butter lettuce second favourites, so I often make my salads with a mix of all three.
ReplyDeleteI have only made leek and potato soup once and it was very "gluey", now I'm wondering if adding celery would make it less so. Perhaps I used the wrong type of potatoes?
I like all types of lettuce. My favourite at the moment is lamb's lettuce.
DeleteSounds like you made very good use of the vegetables by making soup. I eat soup all year round. It's seldom too hot unless it gets close to 100 for me to refuse soup. I have made lettuce soup with peas and it is very good.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds a tasty combination.
DeleteI love lettuce and can eat plates of it with salt and vinegar.
ReplyDeleteLikewise, but without the condiments!
DeleteTo my mind, lettuce is an 'ought to eat' food not a 'love to eat' food. I do adore leeks, and leek soup too, at any time of year
ReplyDeleteCheers, Gail
Soup is very satisfying, especially with crusty bread.
DeleteHere in India we don't get the same type of lettuce. We have a slightly different variety. It's a common vegetable, giving us iron and vitamins, building immunity and aiding digestion.
ReplyDeleteIt's surprisingly versatile.
DeleteI love lettuces. I've only recently tried adding it to soups and stir fries and have been surprised at how well it has held up.
ReplyDeleteAny 'tired' vegetables go into stir-fry - always very satisfactory.
DeleteI enjoy lettuce but P hates it so any attempt to grow my own ends in sabotage!
ReplyDeleteAwww! How can anyone hate lettuce? It's so innocuous.
DeleteHi Janice - I used to make cold lettuce soup quite often - love it ... also Vichyssoise ... I recently made some Bortscht - another blast from the past. Also Gazpacho ... sorry - got side tracked with my taste buds brewing!! So delicious - good for Barry setting to. Cheers Hilary
ReplyDeleteAh, yes, there's a whole world of delicious soups.
DeleteYour plethora of lettuce made me smile Janice. We do this ourselves more often than not but your pot of leek and lettuce soup sounded delicious! We bought a huge container of spinach home the other day, didn’t look that big at the store! We used the last of it in a lemon-spinach noodle dish. I will have to try your soup with our extra lettuce sometime. Lovely post and I enjoyed the Beatrix Potter illustrations.
ReplyDeleteSpinach always looks so voluminous but it soon wilts to a manageable amount. Lemon and spinach sounds a lovely combination - actually, lemon with most things is good :-)
DeleteInteresting about making soup with lettuce. I've never heard that before. I may have to check and to see what it's about. I do appreciate your artwork today.
ReplyDeleteBeatrix Potter's was such a talented and observant artist.
DeleteA bit of bacon in your potato and leek soup would make it perfect.
ReplyDeleteHere, Iceberg lettuce became unfashionable but it is now back in fashion. I've been eating Iceberg lettuce for my whole life, except I just knew it as lettuce.
I agree about the bacon, but some of it was for one of the vegetarian daughters.
DeleteBecause of cost of living, I have not bought any lettuces to eat but too much cabbage
ReplyDeleteOoh, cabbage is lovely. Strange to think I hated it when I was a child.
DeleteLettuce, very humble but Very useful, I've used it in stir fries and soup too.
ReplyDeleteAlison in Wales x
It's such a valuable vegetable - strange to think of it as a vegetable;-)
DeleteWe're finding more uses for lettuce these days than that of our parents. Nice post.
ReplyDeleteThere are probably more varieties now, too :-)
DeleteI eat a big salad nearly every day and I'm always having to go buy more lettuce. I have never heard of putting it in soup! My mom used to cook leaf lettuce from the early spring with bacon and vinegar. She called it wilted lettuce and I could eat it by the plateful, it was so good.
ReplyDeleteWilted lettuce sounds good. I like vinegary foods:-)
DeleteI recall the English chef in a hotel I working in NZ years ago putting lettuce soup on the menu and the locals simply looking bemused - so stuck in our views that lettuce is for salad (and nought else)
ReplyDeleteI think many people would have a similar reaction, even now.
DeleteOh and I forgot to mention that I read somewhere about extracting 'opioids' from lettuce (I suspect the concentrations - if it was not a hoax - are very low.)
ReplyDeleteI was intrigued by this so looked it up. Here's some of what I found:- 'there is a substance in certain types of lettuce known as lactucarium, which has been nicknamed “lettuce opium.” It’s a milky fluid secreted by several species of lettuce . . . Lactucarium has sedative and analgesic properties, and it’s even been reported to promote a mild sense of euphoria . . . it doesn’t actually contain opiates like true opium does, and it doesn’t pose a risk for dependency or addiction . . . it’s not a potent opioid . . . it has historical use as a mild pain reliever and sedative.'
ReplyDeleteThank you for reminding of the possibility of lettuce soup, which I sometimes made in the past but had completely forgotten about. I might give lettuce and leek soup a try next time. And perhaps it's worth a try chomping on some lettuce leaves before bed ... xxx
ReplyDeleteI've never noticed lettuce having an effect on anything . . .
DeleteIt has turned a little chilly and rain at Wimbledon!!!
ReplyDeleteWe had some chicken soup earlier, unusual for July but it went down a treat :)
The soups you mention in your post sound good and I did enjoy seeing the Beatrix Potter images.
Enjoy the rest of your week.
All the best Jan
Wimbledon and rain seem to belong together, sadly.
DeleteExciting day today ;-)
Genial cuento me gusto mucho. Las imagenes enamoran siempre me gustaron los dibujos de Potter. Me gusta la lechuga. Te mando un beso.
ReplyDeleteI think Beatrix Potter's illustrations are wonderful.
ReplyDelete