Sauteed Vegetable Lettuce Wraps

Hello hello! 

This is another recipe from when I was back home. I have not done it in college yet, but only because I haven't been able to get my hands on full leaves of lettuce. 

This recipe is a take off of the Fridge Dump Lettuce Wraps. Originally, I was going to eat the veggies with a fork in a bowl, again considered a pita, and realized we still had lettuce! 

Without further ado...

The Recipe: Sauteed Vegetable Lettuce Wraps

• 1 tsp butter
• 3 medium carrots, chopped
• 1 cup frozen green beans
• 1 cup sliced white mushrooms

The Process: 

• Warm a frying pan on the stove (5-10 minutes on high)
• Once the pan is warm, add the butter and move the pan so that it spreads. Lower the heat to low-medium. 
• Add broccoli and green beans to the pan. 
• Add salt and pepper and mix with a spatula. 
• Add carrots to the pan and mix with a spatula. 
• Add mushrooms to the pan and mix with a spatula. 
• Allow the mixture to cook, covered, for 5-7 minutes. You will be able to smell when the vegetables are done, and they will be slightly browned. 
• Remove mixture and put in a bowl or on a plate. 
• Spoon mixture into lettuce leaves. 
• Wrap and enjoy! 

The calories: 

Carrots: 50 calories

Green Beans: 77 calories

Mushrooms: 68 calories

Butter: 25 calories

Salt/Pepper: insignificant calories

Lettuce: 6 calories

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TOTAL: 176 calories

This entire recipe is very low calorie and very high satisfaction!

What went right:
          It was all delicious and super healthy!

What went wrong:
          Nothing really...although for the sake of balance, adding rice would have made it even better.

Would I do this again?: 
          Yes, definitely!

Overall this was a great take off of multiple food ideas and I look forward to having it with rice and maybe cabbage in the future!

Fridge Dump Lettuce Wraps

Welcome welcome! 

You know that feeling when you get home late from a long day and just want something easy that doesn't make you feel gross, but you only have leftovers in the fridge?

That was me right before I decided to make this dish. I hesitate to say "create", because Lettuce Wraps have existed long before my birth, but I don't know that anyone has tried this combination. 

We also had tortillas, so at first, I wanted to make tortilla wraps. However, if you've ever read the nutrition facts on the back of a tortilla package, you'll see that they contain a shocking amount of carbs and calories! (More on that later...). 

At first, with the lettuce, I considered making a salad with just the lettuce, chicken, and maybe some corn. But with the addition of exhaustion at 10:00pm, that small meal just screamed 'large bowl of ice cream for dessert'.

Hungry and tired, I was very close to resigning to my bed sans dinner. But then, I remembered a meal I was too picky to try at a friend's house about 10 years ago. We ordered in; I ate plain jasmine rice and miso soup while she and the rest of her family ate various exotic mixes wrapped in lettuce...or maybe it was cabbage? Either way, that blurry image of delicious wrapped in crunchy, healthy, low calorie, green boats sounded lovely and filling. 

So, 10 years later.....

The Recipe: Fridge Dump Lettuce Wraps

• Four leaves of Romaine lettuce
• One cup of cooked Jasmine Rice
• Half an ear of cooked yellow sweet corn
• One cup of steamed green beans
• Half a breast of cooked chicken

The Process: 

• Put the rice in a plastic container
• Arrange the rice so that there is a column of space in the center
• Fill the column halfway with water
• Press a balled paper towel sheet on top of the rice cup
• Use sensor reheat on a microwave to heat the rice
• Put rice in a bowl
• Wrap the half ear of corn in a paper towel sheet
• Use sensor reheat on a microwave to heat the corn
• Use a steak knife to cut the corn off the cob and add it to the bowl of rice
• Wrap the half chicken breast in a paper towel sheet
• Slice it into smaller pieces and add it to the rice and corn
• Use sensor reheat on a microwave to heat the corn
• Place the green beans in a Magic Bullet cup with the steamer lid and a small amount of water
• Microwave for one minute
• Remove and loosen the lid slightly
• Microwave for one more minute
• Add the green beans to the rice, corn, and chicken
• Mix the green beans, rice, corn, and chicken
• Spoon the mixture into lettuce as desired
• Wrap lettuce around the mixture
• Enjoy!

The Calories:

Lettuce: 19 calories

Rice: 205 calories

Green Beans: 34 calories

Chicken: 123 calories

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TOTAL: 381 calories 

For 381 calories, this is a lot of food, and a very well-balanced meal! I'm so glad I used lettuce instead of tortillas because it allowed me to have more of the mixture and still end up with a low calorie count. Each tortilla would be about 150 calories, and I made four lettuce wraps, so would have used four tortillas. That would add about 600 calories to the total, making the meal 981 calories.

What went right:

         I successfully used quite a few leftovers in the fridge and they actually tasted very good together. The meal was light and healthy, but filling. 

What went wrong: 

         Nothing, really. It would have been nice to have made it with fresh ingredients I suppose.

Were I to use fresh ingredients rather than leftovers, this would be the new Process:

• Boil 1-1.5 cups of water in a small pot.
• Put a small amount of water in the large Magic Bullet cup with the steamer top.
• Boil 3-4 cups of water in a large pot.
• Light a grill, or heat up a Panini/grill pan on the stove.
• In the small pot, cook your rice on low-medium heat until it is saturated and sticky.
• In the Magic Bullet cup, put desired amount of green beans.
• In the large pot, boil an ear of corn for about 10 minutes.
• On the grill or Panini/grill pan, cook your chicken. Time for each will differ based on your product.
• Follow leftover recipe from this point forward.

What would I do next time?: 

         I would try using some other ingredients...avocado would be awesome, and possibly some tomatoes or pico de gallo. It might also be fun to experiment with different rices and seasonal veggies. I know a lot of people would add sauces or dressings to this, and I suppose it would keep the mix together as more of a dip, but it would also add unnecessary calories and sodium. With sauteed vegetables or fried rice and tofu, I might try it with soy sauce, peanut sauce, or teriyaki sauce...but only a little bit!

Would I make this in college?:

         This is probably going to happen at some point in college. For some reason "fridge dump" feels like a very college event. 

Overall, a very satisfying meal and I can't wait to try more versions!

Easy Vegetable Medley

Happy Tuesday!

While I've been cooking almost daily for a while, I don't really count things like canned soup or ham and salami sandwiches, although I will for sure be making things of this nature in college. I'm now on vacation, which generally means a lot of eating out at whatever restaurant we can find...night one included +Applebees, which I was happy to discover now has a grilled chicken with mushrooms and mixed vegetables!

Last night, while shopping for food with my dad, I decided I wanted a veggie medley that I could make in about as much time as the pasta I was making for my brother. Rather than buying a head of cauliflower, a head of broccoli, raw carrots, and raw green beans and sweet peas, my dad suggested that I choose from the massive mixes of frozen vegetables that were already cut, steamed, and ready to roast. This sounded very college-practical, so I decided it was worth doing.

The Recipe: Easy Vegetable Medley

• One package of frozen cauliflower, broccoli, and carrot chunk medley
• 1/2 package of frozen green beans, yellow green beans, sweet peas, and baby carrot medley
• 1/3 package of frozen green peas
• About three teaspoons of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt
• Pepper

The Process: 

• Break apart frozen ingredients while they're in the bag and allow them to sit and thaw briefly
• Set the broiler on your oven to high
• Put the grate on a high shelf, depending on the depth of your pan, so the vegetables can be close to the flame
• Pour your ingredients into a bowl and mix 
• Pour the mix into a baking pan
• Drizzle olive oil over the vegetables in the baking pan
• Sprinkle salt and pepper to taste over the vegetables in the baking pan
• Use a spatula to mix the vegetables  around so they all become coated in the oil-salt-pepper mix
• Put the pan in the oven for 10-15 minutes, watching closely because all ovens differ 
• They are done when the broccoli and green beans develop brown edges, and the carrots appear to have a skin 
• Take out the vegetables and enjoy!

The Calories: 

The mix made about 4 cups of vegetables, which is 473 calories! I was full after about 2.5 cups. Health gets a score of 10/10. 

What went right:  

               The vegetables came out wonderfully. They are simple and filling with high fiber; very nutritious. 

What went wrong: 

               Nothing really...this is a relatively fool-proof method of making vegetables. I might leave them in for another minute or so to make them softer, but that is the difference between using freshly steamed and frozen vegetables I suppose. 

What I would try next time: 

               Other than cooking a little bit longer, I would like to try adding some teriyaki sauce or maybe some sesame seeds for a totally different taste. I would also like to try a honey glaze, or adding garlic or onion to the mix. 

Would I do this in college: 

               Oh yes. I will be doing this many, many times in college! I love the not having to steam or deal with whole heads of cauliflower and broccoli. 

Overall a very successful dinner!!