Lettuce Wraps or Lettuce Wrap Salad

I had some leftover dressing from the Asian Noodle Salad, so I tried it in this recipe and it worked beautifully. So may I suggest you double the dressing recipe when you make the noodles one week, and use it for these the following week. Two birds with one stone and so yummy. Also, I prefer to eat this salad style because I just couldn't manage to keep the filling inside the lettuce leaf anyway.

Lettuce Wraps or Lettuce Wrap Salad

Ingredients:

1 Tbl. Olive Oil

1 lb. Ground Turkey

1 Red Bell Pepper, chopped

1 Green Bell Pepper, chopped

1 cup Carrots, grated or pre-packaged matchstick

1 can Water Chestnuts, drained and chopped

3-4 stems Green Onion, chopped

1 head Romaine Lettuce, cleaned

Asian Sauce (as used for the Asian Noodle Salad)

Combine in a blender until smooth:

1/2 cup brown sugar

1/2 cup soy sauce

1/4 cup vegetable oil

3 Tbl. creamy peanut butter
3 Tbl. rice vinegar
2 Tbl. sesame oil
1 tsp. ginger, freshly grated or minced*

The How-to: In a saute pan over medium-high heat, add olive oil and once hot, add ground turkey and cook until browned well. Add peppers, carrots and water chestnuts. Cook for 3-4 minutes until softened. Add sauce and cook until everything begins to caramelize, 3-4 additional minutes. Take off of heat and garnish with green onions. Serve over chopped lettuce or inside and rolled up in a lettuce leaf like a burrito.

Peanut Sesame Noodles

So easy to make, kids love it, perfect for the warm weather ahead--yahhh!!!

Peanut Sesame Noodles
Adapted from Smitten Kitchen
Servings: Makes 6 side-dish or 4 vegetarian main-course servings.

For peanut dressing:

1/2 cup smooth peanut butter

1/4 cup soy sauce

1/3 cup warm water

1 tablespoon chopped peeled fresh ginger

1 medium garlic clove, chopped

2 tablespoons rice vinegar

1 1/2 tablespoons Asian toasted sesame oil

1 tablespoon honey

1 teaspoon dried hot red pepper flakes or a splash of hot sauce

For noodles:

3/4 lb dried soba nooodles (I used whole wheat spaghetti)

4 scallions, thinly sliced

1 red bell pepper, cut into 1/8-inch-thick strips (optional)

1 yellow bell pepper, cut into 1/8-inch-thick strips (optional)

1 seedless cucumber, thinly sliced

1 cup firm or extra-firm tofu, cubed (optional)

3 tablespoons sesame seeds, toasted

Puree dressing ingredients in a blender until smooth, about 2 minutes, then transfer to a large bowl.
Cook pasta in a 6- to 8-quart pot of boiling salted water until tender. Drain in a colander, then rinse well under cold water.
Add pasta, scallions, bell peppers, cucumber and tofu to dressing, tossing to combine. Garnish with toasted sesame seeds and serve immediately.