my lettuce has gotten ahead of me.  the hot hot summer, my constant traveling, and the munching habits of a neighborhood deer have conspired to cause my lettuce to bolt.

see?

now it’s all bitter and a bit latexy.  but it is not ruined!  it’s still good, it’s still good!

so, if you’re like me and have some bolted lettuce, do not fret.  use it like swiss chard or any other bitter green: blanch it then saute it with some citrus to cut it. and go to town!

here are my first two (delicious) experiments:

blanched bolted red leaf lettuce tossed into sauteed onion, garlic, and mushrooms.  other ingredients: lemon juice, olive oil, sesame oil, soy sauce, chili powder, salt pepper.

blanched bolted romaine sauteed with apple cider vinegar, olive oil, lemon juice, and a touch of soy sauce on top of fried tomatoes [olive oil and apple cider vinegar] and covered with pan-fried fingerling potatoes [onion, garlic, chili powder, nutritional yeast, olive oil, cumin, italian seasoning].