Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

There is a certain chain Chinese restaurant that makes amazing chicken lettuce wraps. They don't have the nutritional information on their menu, but from the oil dripping from the chicken, I'm going to guess it's one of the more unhealthy things on their menu, even with the guise that it's chicken and lettuce and thus good for you.

But, I do love them, so of course I had to figure a way to make a healthy version that fits on my Medifast plan. I love the crunch of the lettuce and the warm chicken and veggies. Like most of my healthier adaptations, I'm discovering I love the healthy version more than the original, and my scale is loving them too! :)

Asian Chicken Lettuce Wraps

Ingredients:

6 oz cooked chicken breast, minced (1 leaner)
1/2 cup celery, diced (1 green)
1/2 cup shitake mushrooms, thinly sliced (1 green)
1 garlic clove, minced (1 condiment)
1 tsp soy sauce (1 condiment)
1/2 tsp oyster sauce (1/2 condiment)
1/2 cup fresh cilantro, chopped (1/2 condiment)
1 tsp olive oil (1 healthy fat)
2 drops sesame oil (I put this into the olive oil when I'm measuring)
1 cup Iceberg lettuce leaves (1 green)

Soak the shitake mushrooms for around 30 minutes. Drain, but reserve the soaking liquid. Thinly slice the mushrooms.

In a large skillet, saute the celery, mushrooms and garlic in the olive and sesame oil until the celery is almost aldente. Add the chicken, soy sauce, oyster sauce and cilantro. saute for 2-3 minutes until everything is warmed through. Add 1/4 cup of the mushroom soaking liquid to thin the sauce.

Serve the chicken mixture in Iceberg lettuce "cups".

Tip: The mushroom soaking liquid is essentially mushroom broth. You can use this to make soup, etc. It's great stuff!

Medifast Calcs: 1 leaner serving, 3 green, 3 condiments, 1 healthy fat

Fish Tacos

So I must start this post out by stating that I LOVE a good fish burrito. Not a big fan of the corn tortilla wrapped fish tacos (I'm not really a fan of corn tortillas in most applications). But this fish taco recipe I developed left me craving more. The recipe makes four VERY filling fish tacos, with the entire plate being one gigantic Medifast Lean and Green serving.

This was also my first experience using any sort of Walden Farms product. I'd read mixed reviews about their products, but I thought I'd give it a shot. I wanted that creamy cilantro and lime sauce, but didn't have the healthy fat to spare (because of the cheese in the tortillas). I didn't do the math for the healthy fats, I just assumed that I didn't need the healthy fat serving. All of the Walden Farms products count as 2 Tbsp=1 condiment.

Anyway, the cilantro lime ranch sauce makes these tacos SO delicious. The combination of the three flavors, especially the lime, makes all of the flavors POP! Mmmm. I'm craving these just thinking about it! Also, the picture only shows a drizzle of the sauce on the tacos. The remaining sauce is in a bowl off to the side. It is all included in the L&G calculations, and believe me, the rest was devoured with the tacos. I just didn't want them dripping all over me as I ate!

The recipe for the "corn" tortillas below can also be used to make one large tortilla. I made mine rectangular, but you could also make it circular to resemble a large flour tortilla. I just figured the rectangular shape would aid in rolling the burrito. Anyway - it's the same ingredients and baking time, just make it one large circle instead of four small ones. I also didn't flip the large one halfway through. (The small ones are easy to flip, the big one? Yeah, not so much.) It didn't seem to impact the flavor or texture, it just was slightly less browned on the top side. :)

Fish Tacos

Fish Tacos with Cilantro Lime Ranch Drizzle (extra sauce on the side not shown) 

Tortillas:
1 cup grated cauliflower (2 green)
1/4 cup egg beaters (1/8 lean)
3/8 cup reduced-fat shredded Mexican cheese (6g fat/oz) (3/8 lean category)
1/8 tsp Southwest Chipotle Mrs. Dash (1/2 condiment) (If using the tomato salsa topping, omit this seasoning to stay at 3 condiments)

Taco filling:
3.5 oz Talapia, cooked as desired (1/2 lean)
1/2 cup shredded cabbage (1 green)

Toppings:

1/2 cup chopped cilantro (1/2 condiment)
1 Tbsp chopped onion (1 condiment)
1 tsp fresh squeezed lime juice (1/2 condiment)
1 Tbsp tomato salsa (1 condiment)

OR

Cilantro Lime Ranch Drizzle:
2 Tbsp Walden Farms Ranch (1 condiment)
1/4 cup chopped cilantro (1/4 condiment)
2 tsp fresh lime juice (1/2 condiment)

Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Line a 1/4 sheet cake pan with parchment paper. Wrap Talapia in foil and bake for 20 minutes or until flaky.

Grate 1 cup of cauliflower and place in a medium-sized bowl. Add 1/4 cup egg beaters, 1/2 cup  cheese. Add a 1/8 tsp of Southwest Chipotle Mrs. Dash. Add salt and pepper to taste. Mix with a spoon and place in four 1/3 cup piles on the parchment. Spread each pile as thin as possible in a circle, avoiding holes in the mixture. Bake at 425 degrees for 30 minutes, flipping at 15 minutes. The crust will be browned and look a bit like a quiche looks on the top. These can be made ahead of time and refrigerated. Just heat them in the microwave on a couple paper towels for 30 seconds.

For the cilantro/tomato salsa topping, chop a white onion and cilantro and toss together.

For the Cilantro Lime Ranch Drizzle, finely chop the cilantro. Place in bowl with the ranch and lime juice, stir until blended. Add a touch of salt if necessary.

Cut the talapia into four pieces, place a piece of talapia on each tortilla, top with shredded cabbage and the topping of your choice. For the cilantro/tomato salsa topping, squeeze the lime directly onto the fish.

Recipe makes four fish tacos, which equal 1 lean and green serving.


L&G Calculations:
1 Lean
3 Green
Cilantro, onion and tomato salsa topping: 3 Condiments
Cilantro Lime Ranch Drizzle: 1 3/4 Condiments

(Apologies for the less than stellar picture (again) turns out one of my kids had gotten ahold of my camera and changed the settings, thus making every picture look like I had my finger on the flash! Ugh!)