26.8.08

Wrapper's Delight

It's hard to find healthy wrappers. Tortilla wrappers, that is. To find one that is pretty low in fat, calories and sodium, with a solid amount of fiber (whole wheat) is tough. And as I found out recently, even the best ones can have lurking trans fat. So you might have to look hard, but once found, they can be very useful and tasty to eat. They especially can make lunches healthier and less carb-ful when they themselves don't have any negative attributes.

So how do you fill a wrapper to make it tasty and enjoyable? Sure, you could put your regular sandwich of cheese and deli meat and mayo and lettuce and tomato. Or you could try something healthier and tastier. You can even prep ahead and have one sandwich preparation last several lunches. You can do this while mixing and matching a little to shake things up, but having 90% of the work done ahead of time makes eating or bringing healthy lunches way easier.

Here's an idea that will make a terrific wrap for you that you'll want to eat all week long. It is a chicken veggie wrap and couldn't be healthier. All you need for chicken is about two ounces of grilled boneless, skinless breast meat. I had two four ounce breasts I had just bought for the week, so I grilled up both to use for four lunches. If it's precooked, that's fine. If you're cooking it now, I rubbed each one all over with a tiny bit of kosher salt, a lot of pepper and a few drops of Tabasco. (No added fat needed!) I got my grill pan really hot on high and grilled them each for about seven to eight minutes per side. This gave them a little grill finish on the outside but lean, moist white meat on the inside. At this point I shredded the meat with two forks while it was still warm so the flowing juices would seep into all the little shreds of chicken to maximize moistness. I put three quarters of the meat into a deli container to save for a dinners or lunches later in the week.

While the chicken was cooking, I prepped the vegetables. I finely diced one bell pepper and a quarter of a red onion and put them in a mixing bowl. I then took out a bag of broccoli florets and also finely diced those. Raw broccoli is an incredible vegetable, filled with fiber, nutrients and antioxidants, but it is not easy to eat in large pieces when raw. That's why I suggest dicing it and letting its goodness mix through, less noticed. Lastly, I chopped half of a jalapeƱo and added that as well for some kick. The peppers and onion are also nutrient and antioxidant filled, so the raw veggie mixture was very health happy.

To the veggies, I added a couple tablespoons of balsamic vinegar, a pinch of salt, pepper and Tabasco and about a quarter of a cup of nonfat Greek yogurt. It's a great choice taste-wise, and healthier than most nonfat yogurts. It adds a nice tang, slight richness and a little more texture. Now my veggies tasted great, but didn’t have any added fat either. Well actually, no fat at all!

I got out one 3.5-gram-of-fiber whole wheat tortilla and lined it with baby spinach leaves. Then I put a line of about 2 ounces of veggies, topped by two ounces of the shredded, grilled chicken. Lastly, I put another layer of 2 ounces of veggies on top of the chicken. I wrapped the wrapper carefully and burrito-like, parallel to the line of ingredients, with some tin foil, so I could easily eat it the next day.

In just over 20 minutes I had made myself a tasty and very healthy sandwich wrap for lunch. But with my extra veggies and chicken, I was now only a minute away from three other meals. And “tasty” and “healthy” are certainly best when paired with the word “easy.”



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