Lunch @ 226 - Cashew Snack Wraps

Do you have a standard variety of produce in your refrigerator? We do. It involves mushrooms, salad greens, green onions, carrots, broccoli and celery. These are our staples and they are always purchased at the store, regardless of if they are needed in a recipe. It makes me feel safe to have these (sort of on the boring side) vegetables in my crisper. I know I can make dinner, even if these few things are all I have.


A few months ago, I peered into the hydrator as I started to plan lunch. I didn't see much. But, there were carrots, a half eaten cucumber, a few pea shoots and some green tortilla shells, which Reed refers to as Mermaid Food. That's anything green, actually. I had a vision that involved all of these Forgotten Ingredients and I pulled my knife off its magnet, like some sort of armed culinary superhero.



I pulled out the spinach flour tortillas and thinly sliced a seedless cucumber. Then I coarsely shredded some carrots and added some pea shoots. Sometimes I add thinly sliced mushrooms, avocado, green onions, cooked edamame, cold cubes of tofu, finely chopped or shredded broccoli. You get the idea...it's a "whatever wrap." Just think about what you're adding. I try to keep it all in the Asian flavors group, because they are sort of dumbed down Asian snacks. So, you know, no tomatoes. That'd be icky.



After you've added your vegetables, chop a few cashews...like, 1/2 a cup for two wraps. It tastes best with roasted and salted cashews but we're trying to eat more raw nuts so we're slowly training our taste buds to enjoy the buttery texture and flavor of raw cashews wrapped up in these. You use whatever you have. Dump the nuts on top of your piles of vegetables.



A caterer/chef I occasionally work for often proclaims, "the sauce is boss." She's right, really. If you have an average crab cake, people will still rave about it if it is paired with the perfect aioli. So, that's the key for these. Run out to your neighborhood *Trader Joe's and pick up a bottle of Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette dressing. It's indescribably yummy. I will tell you though, if spooning it into my mouth as a soup were socially acceptable, I would do that. Everyday. Drizzle that on top of the contents of your wrap, roll up, toothpick to keep closed and to feel fancy, slice on the diagonal, and serve.



With the same vegetable assortment, I usually make a salad while they're eating their wraps. This one had crunchy romaine, shredded green cabbage, a little red onion, 1/2 an avocado, thinly sliced cucumber, shredded carrot, some leftover edamame, cashews and of course the soup, I mean, salad dressing. It was awesomely filling and so very tasty.

*If you don't have a Trader Joe's, just google something like "Spicy Peanut Vinaigrette recipe" and there are plenty of results. I like to take shortcuts at lunchtime to make my afternoon run a little more smoothly. But, feel free to take the time to make your own sauce. I'm sure it would be tremendous.


"Yo Moms, where'd you get this shit? It's DANK!"

This is Beckett, eating his Mermaid Food, aka Roasted Seaweed Snacks which we both love. But, I've always thought this photo looked like he just received a heaping portion of the Best. Drugs. Ever. Oh, my little stoner.