High (Vegan) Protein Lettuce Wraps

Most of today was overcast and cool. I shopped in the village happy there were no line-ups at the grocery store; in and out in 20 minutes. It rained lightly through the afternoon then the sun appeared while I prepped dinner and enjoyed a Pineapple Moscow Mule my husband made me. It’s always cocktail hour somewhere right?

Tonight I made Lettuce Wraps stuffed with a mixture of rice vermicelli noodles, chickpeas and veggies; a different take on those delicious vietnamese wraps we pick up whenever we visit Granville Island Market. High protein veggie meals are a wonderful way to feel more than satisfied eating dishes that don’t contain meat. One thing I used to think when we first went Vegan was “will I be hungry all they time just eating vegetables?”. The answer is No. 100%.

This is a simple recipe that takes about 15 minutes to prep and another 10 minutes to cook. So let’s do this.

I like to make my peanut sauce from scratch only because almost every brand I buy at the store is too spicy for me. I’m a lightweight. So in the blender I add all my ingredients and voila! easy peasy.

Thai Peanut Sauce

3 thin slices ginger (about the size of a quarter each)
1 large clove of garlic
¼ cup peanut butter (or almond butter if you prefer)
¼ cup fresh orange juice
3 tablespoon fresh lime juice
2 tablespoons of Soy Sauce
3 tablespoons agave syrup (or honey for non vegan)
3 tablespoons toasted sesame oil
½ teaspoon salt

For the Wraps You Will Need:

1 cup of vermicelli rice noodles

1/2 a block of Medium/Firm Tofu roughly chopped

1 & 1/2 cup of chickpeas (I used canned. Drained)

1 Tbsp of Coconut Oil (or any vegetable oil you prefer to cook with)

2 green onions, chopped + extra for topping

2 Garlic cloves finely chopped

1/2 a red bell pepper cut thinly

2 small carrots shredded

3-4 Tbsp of Black Bean Sauce

Roasted Peanuts (optional)

Chopped Cilantro for garnish

1 head of Butter Lettuce (find one with large leave for wrapping)

TO MAKE:

Start by soaking the rice noodles in a large bowl with boiling water until they are al-dente and drain.

In a large deep pan heat the oil over medium-high heat.

Add the green onion and the chopped garlic and cook until the onions are soft, about 2 minutes.

Next add the chickpeas and the tofu and using a fork or potato masher, mash the chickpeas and tofu.

Add the sliced red pepper, the shredded carrots and black bean sauce and stir well. Let cook for 3-4 minutes, until the vegetables are tender but crunchy.

Add the rice noodles to the pan. I sliced them a few times with a fork and knife to make them easier to combine with the mixture. Toss to combine with tofu and chickpeas and remove from the stove.

Rinse the butter lettuce leaves and set up all your ingredients like I did, on a large wooden board or in separate bowls on the table.

To assemble the wraps, take a leaf of lettuce, top with the chickpea and noodle mixture and top with green onions and cilantro. Drizzle peanut sauce and top with chopped roasted peanuts. Wrap and enjoy with extra peanut sauce. So good!