Crispy Tender Wrap

Welcome to another addition of faux meat.  As I have said before, I don't cook a lot of processed "meat."  I focus mostly on whole foods. But, for convenience sake, I will eat it about twice a month.  A girl's gotta have her fast food.  Luckily, Gardein makes some pretty decent faux chicken.  Morning Star makes "chicken" nuggets, but I prefer the Gardein Crispy Tenders.  For a quick lunch, I cooked 4 tenders and made 2 wraps for myself.  I cannot take credit for the bomb Thousand Island Dressing in my wrap.  See below for recipe. 

Love chicken tenders in a wrap!

In my wrap:
2 whole wheat flour tortillas, small size
4 Gardein Crispy Tenders
steamed asparagus
avocado slices
grape tomatoes, sliced in half
1 T Thousand Island Dressing

Warm tortillas on the stove or in the microwave.  Stuff with cooked chicken and other goodies.  Spoon on some dressing, fold and chow!

Skinny BitchThousand Island Dressing:

Yes, you can eat it with a spoon, it's that good!

1 cup vegan mayo, I like Follow Your Heart (you can find it at Sprouts)
1/4  cup organic ketchup
1/4 cup sweet pickle relish
2 T tomato paste
3 T lemon juice
1/2 tsp. salt (I used 1/4)
dash of Cayenne

Whisk all ingredients together and store in fridge.

Lunchtime Quicky

Colon cancer isn't invited to my party, so I eat a lot of fiber, including beans.  Beans provide protein as well.  I like some faux meat, but I don't eat it very often.  Here is a quick and easy sandwich you can make for lunch that is so satisfying and healthy, it will blow your socks off.

Think of it this way:

*Take away processed meat and use beans for protein.  You also get fiber, calcium, and iron, for the hat-trick.

*Take away the highly processed cheese (which has saturated fat and major pesticides) and use avocado for that creaminess you crave.  You also get vitamins, minerals, and potassium for the triple-crown.

Add some veggies for crunch--you must have crunch or your mouth won't like it.  I rarely eat pickles, but to this I add bread & butter pickles because my brain tells me to add some sweet to my savory.  By the way, all pickles are swimming in a load of HFCS.    I buy sweet pickles at Sprouts because they use sugar.   Sugar and HFCS are pretty close the way they are processed and the way your body metabolizes them.  Neither are healthy.  Nevertheless, I try to avoid HFCS at much as possible.

Ingredients:

1/4 cup of white Cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
1/2 avocado
Squeeze of lemon
I use Mrs. Dash, but you could use salt and pepper to taste, or garlic powder

Mash bean mixture with a fork and spread on 2 slices of toasted, whole-grain bread. 
Top with sliced tomatoes, Romaine, red onion, pickles, whatever you like.

Guacamole Made Simple

Avocados are in season!  I know, there are a zillion guac. recipes out there, and good ones too.  But I heard a rumor that some people don't eat avocados because they're fattening.  What's the deal yo?  Avocados are high in fat, but they don't make you fat.  Here's why you should eat them often:  fiber, potassium, Vitamins A, C, E, B, minerals, folic acid, low saturated fat, low sodium, and zero cholesterol.

**Did you know our bodies make all the essential fatty acids we need except for two: omega-3 and omega-6.  Guess one place you can get those?  Did you say, avocados?  You are so smart!  Their health benefits include helping lower cholesterol levels, regulating blood pressure, and protecting against heart disease and stroke (monounsaturated fat). Avocados are nature's butter.  Replace some of your dairy with avocado and you will reap the benefits!

I like guacamole that is not covered up by a lot of other flavors.  I don't add onions and tomatoes to my guac. cuz this ain't salsa!  Try with unsalted corn chips and you'll be amazed at the deliciousness.

Here are my simple ingredients:

3 Avocados, mashed. Hold some out cubed, to stir in
2-3 garlic cloves, diced fine
Juice of  1/2 lemon or lime or both
1/4 cup chopped fresh cilantro
1/4 teas. sea salt
pepper to taste

P.S. by the time I was done typing and posting this, I ate all the guacamole.