I learned something this week: you should never say never or else I would not have tried making these thai lettuce wraps with tofu and peanut chili sauce. I once said that I will never post a recipe with tofu on the blog, but here it is, and it is truly delicious! When I was a true vegetarian around my teenage years of 16 and 17, I ate a lot of tofu. But little did I know about cooking back then, so my tofu eating habits looked pretty much like this: lettuce, chopped carrots and red bell pepper with soft (!) plain tofu scrambled on top. If it hadn’t been for the salad dressing, it would have been a total taste nightmare, but it was the best I could prepare in the kitchen at that time, so it sufficed. 

Obviously, I never really liked the taste of tofu back then (duuuh!), as it turned into a slimy texture in my mouth. It was the only way I knew how to eat proteins, however, and in sweet South Dakota, where I lived at that time, I was lucky to get any tofu at all at Walmart. My tofu experience changed recently, however, when I had the most delicious thai coconut tofu soup and vegetable stir fry with the best marinated tofu ever. I had it at one of my favorite vietnamese restaurants in Hamburg, and this experience changed my tofu taste forever. It all comes down to the marinate or sauce, and you’ll never look at tofu the way you did before. So naturally the secret star of this recipe is the sauce, and not the tofu itself.

If you have been following my blog, then you might have noticed that I am quite obsessed with peanut sauces. I usually prefer almond butter during the day, but in Asian dishes, peanut butter is simply a must. Obviously peanut sauce is not really a light sauce, but it simply tastes amazing and comes with another great bunch of protein and healthy fats. The peanut butter combined with a chili sauce like sambal olek, lime juice, tamari and ginger is a sauce made in peanut heaven. If you have a peanut allergy, then almond butter will work just as well, but it will have a different taste. You could also swap the peanut butter for sunflower butter, if you’re allergic to all nuts.

So what good do these thai lettuce wraps do for your body? First of all, these wraps are made with many fresh and raw ingredients, so naturally, you’ll find a good amount of nutrients in this dish. For once we have a vitamin C overdose from the red bell pepper and carrots, as well as some eyesight-protecting vitamin A. Then there’s the tofu and peanut butter, which provide healthy fats and protein. In addition, this is also a low-carb dish because you don’t even need carb-loaded tortillas as the salad leaves serve as your wraps. What a great invention, don’t you think? Try to find large salad leaves so you can have large wraps with lots of filling.

Whether you use the peanut chili sauce to marinate tofu, sweet potatoes, cauliflower or organic meat from happy animals that have led a truly happy life, these thai lettuce wraps are a crowd-pleasing dish and definitely a must-try for every foodie.

Enjoy!

DID YOU MAKE THIS RECIPE OR HAVE ANY SUGGESTIONS, QUESTIONS OR COMMENTS?

Feel free to leave a comment below, and don’t forget to tag your creations on social media using #heavenlynnhealthy.

I’d love for this blog to be a dialogue.

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As this past week has been so beautiful with lots of sunshine and spring temperatures, I thought I’d post another BBQ recipe today. Bruschetta is one of my favorite BBQ side dishes, and I could actually just eat it until I’m full. Instead of grilled bread (which is obviously my #1 choice) I used grilled avocados in this recipe, and oh my, I didn’t even miss my beloved bread. The avocado base almost turns it into a salad equivalent – fresh and light. 

After I found out that you can actually bake avocados, I desperately wanted to try to grill them, too. It gives them kind of a smokey flavor that only a BBQ can achieve, and I think it tastes absolutely terrific. Of course if you don’t have a grill or it’s too cold for a BBQ, you do not have to grill the avocados at all, but I think it adds a nice delicious touch to it. I did a little calculation the other day and realized that I am spending more money on avocados in a month than I spend on going out with friends – foodie problems I guess. But hey, what can I say, I just love my avocados. They are the best way to get healthy fats into your system, and to protect your heart from chronic diseases. I consider my avocado intake as a form of health insurance, so I might as well spend some money on this.

What are your thoughts on avocados? Do you love them? Do you think they’re o.k., or do you actually do not really like them? I think I’ve never met someone who doesn’t like avocados, but I’d love to hear your thoughts about it in the comments below.

I hope you’ll love this bruschetta variation just as much as I do. It will definitely bring your BBQ game to a whole new level.

Enjoy!

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