Lettuce - Healthy and tasty

Lettuce is one of the most delicate salad plants. It is most popular of all the salad vegetables and there are several varieties of lettuce. They differ in color of the leaves, size and texture. The centre of origin of lettuce appears to be the Middle East. The first records of lettuce as a vegetable in a long leaved form are depicted on Egyptian tombs dated 4500 BC. It is now widely cultivated in India, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, China, the Caribbean, Central and South America and East, West and Central Africa.

Types of lettuce:

• Boston (or butter) lettuce is a round, loosely packed head lettuce with soft green leaves. It is very sweet and tender.
• Bibb lettuce is related to Boston lettuce but is smaller, crisper, and more expensive.
• Leaf lettuce (red and green) is less sweet than Boston and Bibb. It's ideal for sandwiches and makes a good addition to salads.
• Romaine lettuce has elongated heads with dark green outer leaves and lighter, tenderer hearts.
• Oak leaf lettuce, frisee, and chicory are less common salad greens. They are often included as components in baby-lettuce mixes.

Nutritional Value of Lettuce:

• The darker the color of the salad green, the more nutritious it is.
• It's a rich source of vitamin A, Vitamin K, Iron, potassium, Manganese and fiber.
• Lettuce is a live food with its rich vitamin content, especially the anti scorbutic vitamin C.
• This food is low in Saturated Fat and Sodium, and very low in Cholesterol.
• It is also a good source of Riboflavin, Vitamin B6, Calcium, Magnesium, Phosphorus and Copper, and a very good source of Dietary Fiber.
• Since lettuce is very low in calories, it has been effective when consumed as a diet food.

Health benefits: Lettuce contains several health-building qualities and many medicinal virtues.

1. Beta-carotene is the chief disease-fighting nutrient found in the darker-colored greens.
2. As an antioxidant, it battles certain cancers, heart disease, and cataracts.
3. A dark-green color also indicates the presence of folic acid, which helps prevent neural-tube birth defects in the beginning stages of pregnancy.
4. It helps to keep the blood clean. the mind alert and body in good health.
5. As lettuce is rich in cellulose, it increases the bu1k of the intestinal contents and encourages peristalsis. It is therefore highly beneficial in curing chronic constipation.
6. Lettuce is beneficial in the treatment of insomnia as it contains a sleep inducing substance called "lectucarium".
7. Lettuce belongs to that group of vegetables which contain three per cent or less of carbohydrate. It is therefore among the important foods which can be prescribed for diabetes.
8. Lettuce contains considerable amount of iron and supplies a good farm of vegetable hemoglobin. It can, therefore, be used as a good tonic food far anemia.

Lettuce leaves should be washed thoroughly before use as salad. They should be washed leaf by leaf. When thoroughly clean, they should be put repeatedly within the folds of a clean towel until the leaves are completely dry.

How to shop and store lettuce:

• If you're given a choice between purchasing a bag of lettuce and buying them by head, go for second choice, it's always the best one. It is quite evident that bagged lettuce can turn brown faster than its whole counterpart.
• When it comes to lettuce, you're better off drying it out than storing it wet. After buying, rinse the lettuce of dirt and other impurities, but before storing them, be sure to use a paper towel to dry the leaves entirely.
• After drying, be sure to put them inside a dry and sealed plastic bag too. This protects the lettuce from outside moist.
• Most refrigerators already have a crisper tray so be sure to put your sealed lettuce bags in there for proper storage.

Quick Lettuce Salad

Ingredients

• 1 head lettuce, broken in bite size pieces
• 3 green onions, sliced
• 6 slices bacon, fried crisp and crumbled

Ingredients for dressing

• 1 cup sour cream
• 1 tablespoon vinegar
• 2 tablespoon sugar
• 1 teaspoon salt

Method

1. Pour bacon and drippings over greens and toss until all leaves are lightly coated.
2. Blend dressing ingredients, pour over greens, and toss lightly. Serve right away. The leftovers are great the next day when it is wilted.

(Sources: home.howstuffworks.com, recipes.howstuffworks.com, best-home-remedies.com, cooks.com, ezinearticles.com)