Roasted Cauliflower Wraps

I have made these delicious wraps multiple times now and they are always a hit.  When my 2 kids scarf something down I know I've found a winner.  I originally wanted to try this recipe since I am constantly searching for recipes that have veggies as the star. 

The first time a made these I wasn't sure if the kids would like them.  I only made half a head of cauliflower (it was just the three of us) and I ended up having to make 2 more batches.  I don't know how I have gone this long in life not knowing the joys of roasted cauliflower!  And as delicious as the cauliflower is on its own, it is even better wrapped up with some arugula and the red pepper spread.

Don’t be fooled by the lengthy directions below- this is a great quick dinner or lunch option!

Changes:

We don’t make too many changes to this recipe as it is delicious as is!  I do like to use pitas instead of wraps depending on what I’ve got around the house.  Try toasting up a pita and shoving the fixins inside its steaming middle…so good!! It’s also nice to roast some extra red pepper and put slivers of red pepper in your wrap or pita!

Roasted Cauliflower and Arugula Wraps with Red Pepper Chickpea Spread

http://www.nourishingmeals.com/2009/03/great-gluten-free-wraps.html

Roasted Red Pepper Spread:

1 ½ red bell peppers, roasted *see instructions below

2 cups cooked chickpeas (garbanzo beans)

4 tablespoons almond butter

3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon garlic powder or 2 to 3 cloves fresh garlic

1 to 2 teaspoons Herbamare or sea salt freshly ground black pepper

Roasted Cauliflower:

2 tablespoons or so extra virgin olive oil

1 small red onion, cut into chunks

1 Head of fresh cauliflower, cut into pieces

Sea salt

Other Ingredients:

Fresh arugula or any fresh organic green

Brown rice tortillas (steamed and still warm)

• Our rice tortillas are still crumbly even after we follow these instructions! What's your secret to soft rice tortillas? Do you have a favorite brand?

To roast bell peppers: Place 2 or 3 peppers on a baking sheet under the broiler until the skin is charred, turning frequently, about 8 to 10 minutes. Remove peppers from pan and place them into a paper bag or a covered glass bowl, let stand at room temperature for about 10 minutes. Remove peppers and peel off charred skin. Cut peppers and remove the seeds.

To make the spread: Place all ingredients into a food processor and process until smooth and creamy. Taste and add more salt, pepper and/or garlic if needed. *Note: if you are nut-free or have toddlers who are not yet eating nuts then you can replace the almond butter with sunflower seed butter or pumpkin seed butter (this one won't produce a color that is as lovely as the one pictured though). For toddlers, just take some of the spread out before you add the almond butter and stir in one of the above mentioned seed butters.

To roast the cauliflower: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place onions and cauliflower pieces on a baking sheet and toss in olive oil. Sprinkle with a little sea salt. Roast for about 15 minutes.

To assemble the wrap: Steam and warm the tortillas like we talked about above. Spread with red pepper spread, add veggies and arugula, roll, slice in half, enjoy!

Five Spice Lettuce Wraps

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/five_spice_turkey_lettuce_wraps.html

Click the link above to see the original recipe with beautiful professional photos! Then, read the post below for how we have perfected this awesome lettuce wrap!

We have decided that Eatingwell has created a fantastic base with this recipe and that it doesn't need many changes, but the ones we have made take it to a whole 'nother level! Their recipe already has a creative flavor combination, but those flavors are so good, why limit them? So we just made a few alterations on the quantities of things like, extra five spice powder, salt, and I think everything is better with garlic so I threw some of that in there too. For the garnishes, we like to pour extra hoisin sauce and rice vinegar on top, and then squeeze a little lime over each one… so good! All of our changes are listed in our version of the recipe below. Enjoy!

Five Spice Lettuce Wraps

• 1 cup chicken broth
• 1/2 cup brown rice
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 1 pound 93%-lean ground turkey
• 2 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 tablespoon minced fresh ginger
• 1 large red bell pepper, finely diced
• 1 8-ounce can water chestnuts, rinsed and chopped
• 1/2 cup chicken broth
• 2 tablespoons hoisin sauce (Store bought, or See our soy free recipe below)
• 1 1/2 teaspoons five spice powder
• Five spice powder is often a blend of cinnamon, cloves, fennel seed, star anise and Szechuan peppercorns, five-spice powder was originally considered a cure-all miracle blend encompassing the five elements (sour, bitter, sweet, pungent, salty). We use HOKAN brand’s Five Spice Powder, and we love it! Sometimes I open it just to smell it for a little aromatherapy while I’m playing culinary goddess in Laura’s Kitchen. I also find it fun to wear her daughter’s tiara every once in a while… but who’s keeping track really!? Diva in the kitchen, watch out!
• 1/4 teaspoon salt (I always end up adding more to taste at the end.)
• 2 heads Boston lettuce, leaves separated
• 1/2 cup chopped fresh herbs, such as cilantro, basil, mint and/or chives
• 1 large carrot, shredded (We buy the bag of pre shredded, but go crazy with your mandolin if you so desire!)
• 1 Lime cut into wedges
• Extra rice vinegar for garnish, we pour right out of the bottle (Real classy like)

1. Bring chicken broth to a boil in a small saucepan. Add rice; reduce heat to low, cover and cook for 45 minutes. Remove from heat.
2. Meanwhile, heat oil in a large nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Add turkey, garlic and ginger; cook, crumbling with a wooden spoon, until the turkey is cooked through, about 6 minutes. Stir in the cooked rice, bell pepper, water chestnuts, broth, hoisin sauce, five-spice powder and salt; cook until heated through, about 1 minute.
3. To serve, divide lettuce leaves among plates, spoon some of the turkey mixture into each leaf, top with herbs and carrot and roll into wraps.

Hoisin Sauce 
Normally a spicy, sweet sauce made from soybeans, chiles, garlic and spices, the store bought bottles will keep in the refrigerator for at least a year, and they are great to have on hand.  But since Laura’s son is allergic to soy, we make our own with this recipe:

Hoisin Sauce recipe:

• 1 tablespoon peanut butter (We like the fresh ground peanuts from WholeFoods with no additives)
• 1/2 tablespoon honey
• 1/2 tablespoon molasses
• 2 teaspoons rice vinegar
• 1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1/4 teaspoon onion powder
• 2 teaspoons sesame oil
• 20 drops chinese hot sauce (Sriracha) 
• If you like hot sauces and you don't know about Sriracha, do not hesitate! Go to the store right now and by some. Look for the picture of the Cock/Chicken on the bottle. Now you know, and you are welcome.
• 1/8 teaspoon black pepper
• Add 4 tablespoons coconut aminos
• This brown juice is very much like soy sauce, only not made from soy beans. Tricky!

1. Mix all ingredients together in a small dish
2. Use 2 Tablespoons in with the rice mixture
3. Spoon the rest over each little lettuce taco as a garnish!

Sadly, Laura was ambushed by her own children this evening and was not allowed to enjoy her  tiny-but-delicious lettuce tacos as she would have liked. Poor Laura. They were so good- the Lettuce Wraps, not her little monsters! And, all that soy free business for Aidric, and all he wanted was leftover Salmon from last night. That kid loves him some salmon!

Salmon with Zuchini Salsa

I messed up on this one and it was still delicious... If you love salt like I do!

http://www.epicurious.com/recipes/food/views/Halibut-with-Zucchini-Salsa-Verde-360269#ixzz1fE7bbkZ1


Salmon with Zuchini Salsa

10 ounces zucchini (about 2 medium), trimmed, chopped

1/2 cup chopped fresh cilantro plus leaves for garnish

1/3 cup chopped white onion

5 tablespoons fresh lime juice

2 1/2 tablespoons chopped seeded jalapeño chiles

1 1/4 teaspoons finely grated lime peel

2 1/4 teaspoons coarse kosher salt, divided

Nonstick vegetable oil spray

1 1/4 teaspoons freshly ground black pepper

1 1/4 teaspoons ground coriander

6 6-ounce skinless halibut fillets or cod fillets


1. Combine zucchini, chopped cilantro, and next 4 ingredients in blender. (Vita mix speed 2)

2. Add 1 1/4 teaspoons coarse salt.

3. Puree until salsa is smooth. (I chose chunky)

4. Transfer to small bowl.

5. Cover; chill.

6. Preheat broiler.

7. Line broiler pan with foil; coat foil with nonstick spray.

8. Combine 1 1/4 teaspoons pepper, coriander, and remaining 1 teaspoon coarse salt in small bowl; stir to blend.

9. Pat fish dry. Sprinkle fish on all sides with seasoning mixture.

10. Arrange fish on prepared pan. Broil until just opaque in center, 3 to 4 minutes per side, depending on thickness.

11. Transfer fish to plates. Spoon some salsa over. Garnish with cilantro leaves. Serve with remaining salsa.

We served our Salmon with Roasted Cauliflower, Nourishing Meals style
http://www.nourishingmeals.com/2009/03/great-gluten-free-wraps.html

Roasted Cauliflower:

2 tablespoons or so extra virgin olive oil

1 small red onion, cut into chunks

fresh cauliflower, cut into pieces

sea salt


To roast the cauliflower: Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Place onions and cauliflower pieces on a baking sheet and toss in olive oil. Sprinkle with a little sea salt. Roast for about 15 minutes.

Chipotle Chicken & Rice Stuffed Squash

Welcome to Fall! Here in sunny Florida we have to do everything in our power to create the sense that there are seasons- and what better way to do it than with FOOD!

We found this recipe at www.nourishingmeals.com and have provided the direct link for you here so that you can find it easily too.

http://www.nourishingmeals.com/2010/10/chipotle-chicken-rice-stuffed-squash.html 

Our Changes:

We cut the whole recipe in half- using only 2 acorn squash- but we had enough filling left over that we could have filled another 2 squash. We used short grain brown rice, regular ol' paprika, and we only cooked the stuffed squash about 20 minutes (instead of the allotted 45) for the second baking. We figured, what's the point, everything's already cooked- plus Laura is a bit of a raw food junkie so the less "cooking" the better! And, not that it's a "change" to the recipe, but more of a side note, we used the "Magic Bullet" as the blender for the sauce and it was the perfect size for our halved recipe. It really is magical.

Our Thoughts:

We both loved this dish. It was so different from most of the sweet, savory squash recipes you find. The sauce has a very southwestern (chipotle) flavor and Jen loved the texture of the short grain brown rice in the stuffing. In the past, she has been brown rice adverse, and has just begun exploring the idea of accepting it's texture in select few recipes. This is definitely one of them. 

The Recipe:

3 to 4 medium acorn squash

Filling:

2 cups cooked brown rice

2 cups cooked shredded or chopped chicken

1 to 2 sweet red peppers

1 cup finely chopped kale

Sauce:

1 1/2 cups strained tomatoes (or tomato sauce)

1 cup water

4 cloves garlic, peeled

2 medium shallots, peeled

1 tablespoon cocoa powder

1 tablespoon arrowroot powder

1 tablespoon coconut sugar or agave nectar

2 teaspoons ground cumin

2 teaspoons smoked paprika

1 to 1 1/2 teaspoons sea salt

1/2 to 1 teaspoon chipotle chili powder (use more for more spice!)

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Cut all of the squash in half then scoop out the seeds. Place the squash flesh-side down on a large rimmed baking sheet. Add a small amount of water to the pan. Bake for about 40 to 45 minutes or until tender but not cooked all the way.

Mix the ingredients for the filling in a large bowl.

Place all of the ingredients for the sauce into a blender and blend on high for about 60 seconds or until smooth. Pour sauce into the bowl with the filling. Toss together.

Use a spatula to lift up and remove the the squash halves from the baking sheet. Place them tucked closely next to each other in a large baking dish such as a 9 x 13-inch pan. You may need to use two pans depending on how large the squash are. Scoop the filling into each squash half. I try to stuff in as much as I can. Drizzle all of them with olive oil. Place back into the oven and bake uncovered for about 40 to 45 more minutes. Serve with a squeeze of lime. 

Source: www.NourishingMeals.com