Lettuce Enjoy Spring

Yesterday felt like the first day of spring. Suddenly the chill in the air was gone, the sun was bright and the winds blew warm. It was the kind of day that made me yearn to put the top down on the car and travel up the California Coast. Absent one convertible, I opened the moon roof and sang along as the radio played a late sixties music mix. As I ran the usual weekly errands I thought about dinner. What could I prepare that would represent the freshness of this perfect spring day. I decided on lettuce wraps knowing that the spicy Asian filling would contrast perfectly against the cool crispness of the lettuce. I didn’t have a few of my lettuce wrap staples on hand but, I decided to use what I did have and it turned out very well.

The mix is just about ready

1/3 head of cabbage (shredded)

½ onion

2 cloves garlic

1 small carrot

3 mushrooms (I used baby portabellas)

6 oz roasted chicken

1 tsp Asian chili paste

1 tsp soy sauce

½ tsp salt

½ tsp cayenne

1/2 head of romaine lettuce 

(washed & chilled)

In a large frying pan

Cook the onion till almost soft

Add cabbage, mushrooms, carrot, and garlic

Cook together till soft about 7 minutes

Add chili paste, salt, pepper to taste

spoon into the lettuce and enjoy.

Experiment with ingredients. This one was delicious

(One could add Hoisin sauce and water chestnuts at this point but I was out so I omitted them this time)

Total: Under $7.00 for this spicy and cool spring treat

TIP OF THE DAY: If you are missing some of the ingredients for a regular recipe improvise. It is fun to  play with flavors and develop new ways to prepare old favorites