-=> JIM WELLER wrote to SHAWN HIGHFIELD <=-

 JW> Speaking of lettuce, after those two large dinners I have been
 JW> working with leftovers for over a week now. We had tons of lettuce
 JW> and I was tired of salads, which I rarely eat in the wintertime
 JW> anyway when I remembered a soup Dutch Farmer Bill's mom made the one
 JW> semester in grade nine I lived with them. She would make a green
 JW> split pea soup from dried peas and throw in a whole head of Romaine
 JW> lettuce which would completely melt away into nothingless except for
 JW> a lingering subtle herbal background flavour after an hour of
 JW> simmering. She also used leeks often in a lot of things. So I boiled
 JW> leek greens and a head of Iceberg lettuce in stock, ran the mess
 JW> thorugh the blender and out it back into the pot. Than I added some
 JW> diced Polish garlic coil sausage (it's similar to one common kind
 JW> of Dutch garlic sausage), seasoned it with pepper and savory, and
 JW> added thawed frozen fresh green peas just before serving. It was
 JW> quite good. Who knew cooked lettuce was a thing!

We do cabbage, celery and bok choy in soups - so why not lettuce? Makes
sense to me.

MMMMM----- Recipe via Meal-Master (tm) v8.06
 
      Title: Sweet & Sour Cabbage Soup
 Categories: Vegetables, Herbs, Chilies, Soups
      Yield: 7 Servings
 
      1 lg Head cabbage
      2    Carrots
      2    Celery ribs
      1 lg Onion
      4 tb Olive oi
      6 tb Sauerkraut
     32 oz Broth of your choice
      2 tb Onion powder
      2 ts Red pepper flakes; or more
      2 ts Salt; to taste
      1 sm Cone of piloncillo *
      2 cl Garlic
 14 1/2 oz Can diced or crushed
           - tomatoes
      1    Lemon (opt)
 
  * Mexican brown sugar
  
  Chop the onion, garlic, carrots, celery, and cabbage.
  Put the onion powder, red pepper flakes and 1 teaspoon
  salt in a little bowl, so you have it ready.
  
  Heat a large pot or Dutch oven over medium heat. Add the
  olive oil, and saute the onion until translucent. (5-7
  minutes). Add the garlic, carrots, celery and cabbage
  and continue to saute until the cabbage just starts to
  wilt.
  
  Add the spice mix (onion powder, red pepper, salt) and
  continue to saute. Add more olive oil if things start to
  dry up. Continue to saute until the spice mix is
  distributed evenly and the cabbage starts to become
  cooked through.
  
  Add the tomatoes, the broth of your choice and simmer
  over medium heat, covered, for about 30 minutes. The
  soup may seem too broth-y at this point, but that will
  be taken care of later.
  
  After 30 minutes, uncover and toss in 5-6 heaping
  tablespoons of sauerkraut. Simmer for 10-15 minutes
  more, stirring occasionally. Lower heat and toss in the
  cone of piloncillo, and stir until dissolved.
  
  TASTE THE SOUP AND MAKE THE FOLLOWING ADJUSTMENTS IF
  NECESSARY: -- squeeze lemon if soup is too sweet and/or
  add more sauerkraut -- add salt if necessary -- if too
  liquidy, simmer for 10-15 minutes with lid off -- if not
  enough liquid, use tomato can as measuring cup and add
  water
  
  OPTIONAL STEP: Take off heat and let sit for an hour or
  so to allow flavors to meld, and then reheat before
  serving. Or enjoy right away!
  
  BY: Ingrid Heather
  
  SERVES: 6 - 8
  
  UDD NOTEs: Piloncillo is raw dark brown sugar compressed
  into a cone. What is available to me is either 6 or 8
  ounces per. So I substituted 1/4 cup dark brown sugar
  from my pantry. I used Swansons Beef Broth so this is
  not vegetarian. Vegetable broth is quite acceptable if
  you are keeping vegan.
  
  RECIPE FROM: https://food52.com
  
  Uncle Dirty Dave's Kitchen
 
MMMMM

... Mom says I was a gifted child; she certainly wouldn't have paid for me
--- MultiMail/Win