Well, I had the greatest time soaking in Yellowstone’s scenery over the last five days, but I’m glad to be home with my Cookie girl. I felt a little pang of dog-owner guilt every time I saw a wagging tail in Yellowstone. I’m trying to make it up to her with extra walks and quality time this weekend.
These fresh lettuce wraps are coming to you from Megan Gilmore’s brand new cookbook, titled Everyday Detox: 100 Easy Recipes to Remove Toxins, Promote Gut Health, and Lose Weight Naturally. Megan, also known online as The Detoxinista, is a nutritionist who actually grew up in my neighborhood! Her cookbook is full of sound nutrition advice and over 100 super simple, whole-foods focused recipes, all geared toward cleaning up your diet and improving digestion. Almost all of them are gluten free and vegetarian, and I found quite a few to dog ear.
I couldn’t resist the sound of these fresh lettuce wraps, which reminded me of the lettuce wraps I’ve eaten at P.F. Chang’s in a former life. Her wraps are vegetarian and gluten free, requiring only a few basic ingredients. She used raw pecans instead of meat, which are totally perfect after a five-minute marinade with cooked carrots, celery, onion and a savory, condensed tamari-honey sauce.
My only changes were to add some torn cilantro and red pepper flakes at the end, which are optional. I like my savory-sweet appetizers to lean toward savory and found these to be a little too sweet for my preferences, so I listed a range from half to the full of amount of honey below. I’m going to have to throw a party so I can serve these to my friends! I know they’ll be a hit.
Cuisinart 7-Cup Food Processor
Calphalon Tri-Ply Stainless Steel 1.5 Qt. Covered Saucepan
▸ For more of my favorite cooking tools, shop my kitchen essentials!
Thai-Style Lettuce Wraps
These vegetarian (and easily vegan) lettuce wraps are inspired by the version served at Thai restaurants. Crunchy pecans lend a hearty, almost meat-like texture to these wraps (peanuts work well, too). Butter lettuce provides the perfect base for these appetizers, but if you can’t find any, try substituting green cabbage leaves carefully pulled off the smallest green cabbage you can buy. Recipe yields about 6 wraps, so multiply as needed for a bigger crowd or party.
Sauce
Filling
Wraps and garnishes
- Prepare the sauce: In a small bowl, whisk together the tamari, honey, vinegar, ginger and garlic until well blended.
- Prepare the filling: In a large saucepan over medium heat, combine the carrot, celery, and onion and cover with the sauce. Bring the sauce to a simmer, then cover and allow the vegetables to cook until fork-tender, 10 to 15 minutes.
- Remove the lid and increase the heat, bringing the sauce to a boil. Allow the sauce to boil until the liquid has condensed and almost evaporated (this took about 15 to 20 minutes for me), then remove from heat. Add the pulsed pecan pieces and stir well to coat. Let the mixture marinate for 5 minutes, then scoop into butter lettuce leaves and top with cilantro and red pepper flakes, if you’d like. Serve immediately.
Nutrition
The information shown is an estimate provided by an online nutrition calculator. It should not be considered a substitute for a professional nutritionist’s advice. See our full nutrition disclosure here.
