A Good Addiction

Okay – Let’s see where to start – Let us see- Letus see – LETTUCE!
That’s it, Lettuce wraps.

Goods & I have a serious new addiction to lettuce wraps.
It all started when we went to Mon Jin Lau’s -He ordered their lettuce wraps. He loved their lettuce wraps (none for me, they consisted of chicken) – so that put me on a quest to make my version.

So here we go…..

First I press 1- block of extra firm tofu- (I do mine for at least an hour)

Make the marinate for both veggies & tofu:
¼ c. minced onion
1 T. fresh grated ginger
3-5 minced garlic cloves
1/3 c. of canola oil
½ T. sesame oil
2 T. rice wine vinegar
1 T. tamari
2 T. Hoisin sauce
½ c. water
1 tsp Chinese 5 spice
1 T dried parsley
1 tsp. cilantro (I would use fresh, but I didn’t have)
Ground pepper to taste
Dash of Cayenne Pepper (if desired)

**this should make about 2 cup of liquid – if it doesn’t add more of liquid of preference to do so.

(sometimes I add orange juice - to be wild)

I receive weekly, beautiful veggies from Door To Door Organics.
So I cut up all sorts of fresh veggies in small pieces- approx 8 cups total
Some suggestions:
Broccoli
Carrots
Boy Choy
Onion
Bean Sprouts
Peppers – Red, Green, Jalapeno, Banana etc.
Waterchestnuts (canned of course)

After the tofu is done being pressed– cut in small pieces (½” square or smaller) pour some of the marinate on the tofu (how does ¼ c. sound??)
Pour the rest of the marinate on the cut up veggies…oh - make sure they are in a bowl or some sort of container before you pour it on the veggies.

Now let the marination begin! I let it set for at least an hour.

After all the flavors have infiltrated the tofu & veggies – it’s time for cooking-
Tofu: Heat a skillet with a tablespoon of peanut oil (or oil of choice). Stir fry tofu until desired crispness. Reserve liquid marinate for tofu or veggies if needed.
Veggies: In separate large skillet, stir fry veggies (no need to pre-oil pan)

After all is done to your liking – toss veggies and tofu together.

Door to Door sends beautiful leaf lettuce that allows us wrap the veggies & tofu to feed our lettuce wrap addiction. Take a lettuce leaf and spoon in the cooked mixture.

I like to top my wrap with chopped peanuts and put a big smidgen of Vegan with a Vengeance Peanut Sauce (Page 165) . (BTW, I don’t cook the sauce as in the recipe- because I’m lazy- but it is still excellent!) Goods prefers a Ginger Dressing that we buy at a local oriental market. Also I like to put top it with some chopped peanuts. (Also served store bought veggie potstickers.)

Oh – have lots of napkins ready......

Now this is the first time I have written anything down for making lettuce wraps. I like everything highly seasoned, so I would increase the amount of seasoning next time….but over all I was happy with the outcome.

By the way – if you want to know how many this recipe serves – humm…. yes this is scary- but it’s 2 with a some left over for a lunch for me. I told you we had a problem of lettuce wrap addiction.

Overall rating 5 out of 5 forks - or should it be forkless?

Door to Door Organics

This is my score from my first delivery from Door to Door Organics-

As you know, organic food is pricey, and around my area, quality produce is hard to find. On a vegan meetup website message board I saw a thread on a local organic co-op. This is an excerpt from the thread:

"Door to Door Organics is Michigan's home, office, and co-op delivery service of fresh organic fruits, vegetables, herbs and select groceries. Each week of the year we deliver the freshest organic goodies directly to your door at competitive prices. We have close relationships with a number of Michigan farmers and we work around the clock to make sure that we bring you locally grown produce whenever it's available. Unfortunately, for much of the year in MI local produce is not commercially available. With that being said, we always strive to ensure that we bring you the freshest, organic produce from only the most reputable of farms. The reason we focus on local produce when possible is because it's fresher, requires less fuel to transport, and we get to support our neighbors making it easier for them to support us. We have chosen to shop locally and we hope that you do the same!"

So....I signed up! Received my goodies on Weds. Pictured above is a medium mixed box of fruit & veggies. I am pleased to say that everything looked beautiful. So far we've partaken in the fruit but oh...so yummy. Much better then at our local fruit market. Besides health benefits, I like the option of being able to change the size of your order each week if needed. Also you can change items on your order, add items, put a hold on your order if you go out of town, and you cancel anytime.

If you live in Southeastern Michigan - I highly recommend you check it out.

http://www.michigan.doortodoororganics.com/