Lettuce Wraps & Kale Salad

If you're looking for a super easy healthy meal, this is a great option. When we grill out, we cook extra chicken to use for wraps another night. This time I used rice with it but you could use anything such as barley, quinoia, or make them grain free by adding extra veggies.

Lettuce Wraps
Ingredients:
2 medium cooked organic chicken breasts- finely chopped
2 cups cooked brown rice or other grain
2 cups finely chopped raw vegetables (red pepper, onion, carrots, purple cabbage, water chestnuts, celery, zuchini, broccoli, etc)
1 T Braggs liquid aminos
3 T Ginger Dressing (can be purchased at the store)
1 head "living lettuce"

Place all ingredients except the lettuce in a bowl and toss. Place 2-4 T of the mixture onto a piece of lettuce.  Wrap it up like a tortilla and enjoy! Serves 6.

Kale Salad
Ingredients:
6 pieces of raw kale
2 T fresh lemon juice
1 t olive oil
2 cloves of garlic minced
Salt to taste

Chop kale into small pieces and place in a container that you can refrigerate. (You can keep the stems as you chop or remove them.) Mix the next 4 ingredients in a small bowl. Pour over the kale. Toss and eat immediately or refrigerate to allow kale to marinate. Unlike other lettuce salads that wilt with dressing on them when stored, this salad will keep in the refrigerator for several days!

*The lettuce wraps were inspired by my sweet friend Kathryn Onufrak!  I am always inspired by her creativity in cooking.

Green Juice

Ingredients:
2 stalks kale
1 cup spinach
2 green apples
1 medium cucumber
2 stalks of celery
1/2 lemon
1 small piece of ginger

This recipe is for juicing. Place the kale and spinach in the juicer followed by the ginger. Then after that has run in the juicer for about a minute, add the other ingredients.  I use as many organic fruits and vegetables that I can get locally.  This makes about 24 ounces. Drink immediately and enjoy!

Thanks to my friend Binky for this recipe! It has become one of our favorites.

Green Smoothie

Smoothies are a great way to include lots of power packed nutrition in a fun drink!  We make smoothies several times a week and enjoy them for breakfast or snack.  This smoothie really surprised me!  My friend Margaret told me she put kale in smoothies for her girls in the summer.  She said they could not taste the kale.  I thought I would try it with an existing recipe I use. 

Banana Nut Butter Smoothie

1 cup almond milk

1-2 frozen bananas

2 T. Nut Butter (almond, peanut, sunflower, etc)

1/8 cup Juice Plus Vanilla Complete

2 T flax seed meal

1 stalk of kale

Blend well. Add ice if you would like it thicker. (This recipe is easily doubled!)

We were all surprised that we could not taste the kale.  It turned it a beautiful green color!  Since then we have added kale to lots of smoothies we make.