Gingery Beef Lettuce Wraps

Gingery Beef Lettuce Wraps

Here's another Asian style recipe, quickly adapted from a Weight Watchers recipe that I made for dinner last night. Believe me when I say that eating this feels NOTHING like dieting -- these lettuce wraps are full of flavor, texture and have the elusive "umami" we all hear so much about. I changed the recipe slightly, adding ingredients that upped the flavor. I keep most of these things on hand, because I love cooking this way! (See some more takes on lettuce wraps HERE and also HERE)

Once you've purchased the needed spices and condiments, you can create so many healthy meals. This is not difficult cooking so please don't be intimidated by the  number of ingredients. They are mostly inexpensive and easy to find in a regular grocery store! So here we go -- the only ingredient I added that will add Smart Points to your total -- if you are "counting" -- is the Hoisin Sauce, which adds 1 point to the 3 specified by Weight Watchers. The Hoisin Sauce adds a richness and slight sweetness which interacts nicely with the salty soy sauce and the rice wine vinegar, which I added as well. I've also added Sriracha Hot Sauce, because we like things a little spicy, but leave it out if you don't. Use low sodium selections if you are sensitive to salt or have high blood pressure.

Gingery Beef Lettuce Wraps
4 servings

1 lb. 93% lean ground beef
1 cup thinly sliced yellow onion
2 Tablespoons peeled and minced fresh ginger
1 Tablespoon minced fresh garlic
2 cups Bok Choy, thinly sliced
2 cups shiitake or white button mushrooms, cleaned and sliced, stems chopped
1 medium red pepper, thinly sliced
3 Tablespoons soy sauce
2 Tablespoons Hoisin Sauce
1 Tablespoon Rice Wine Vinegar
Sriracha Sauce (may be omitted if you don't like spicy)
Lime wedges, iceberg or butter lettuce, cucumber pieces and fresh cilantro for serving

Wash 6 - 8 large lettuce leaves and chill in the refrigerator. Dice half a cucumber and cut up a little cilantro to top lettuce wraps. If you don't care for cilantro, use either fresh basil or mint. You  only need a little, the fresh herbs add some extra special flavor on the wraps!

Spray a large non-stick skillet with cooking spray and add the beef over medium high heat. Using a wooden spoon, break the beef apart and crumble it. When it begins to brown add the onion and ginger. Sprinkle over 1 T. of the soy sauce. Cook a 4 - 5 minutes and add the garlic. Saute' briefly to incorporate garlic, then add the red pepper, mushrooms and bok choy. Cook the mixture until the bok choy begins to wilt.  Stir in the remaining soy sauce, Hoisin sauce and rice wine vinegar. Squeeze Sriracha sauce over the top, if using, about 1 - 2 T. Cover the pan, turn down the heat and let cook for 5 minutes.

Gingery beef stir fry mixture

Put a lettuce leaf or two on a plate and top with 1/3 - 1/2 cup of beef mixture. Top with cucumber, herbs and a squeeze of lime. Squeeze on extra Sriracha if you really like spicy -- my husband did! Enjoy!

My Grandmother's Lasagna

Everyone loves THEIR grandmother's lasagna. However, my Grandmother's lasagna is truly special and everyone who tastes it, LOVES IT. She learned it from her very Italian friend, Florence, who learned it form her VERY ITALIAN Mother, who did not even speak English. I loved visiting that family and loved absolutely everything they cooked. Part of what makes this lasagna so special is the sauce. Made with love, it is always made with a meat blend, ground pork and ground beef and sometimes a little ground veal, which is harder to find. We simmer it low and slow at our house, with lots of garlic, onion, basil and tomato sauce. Make your own or buy your favorite and fix this for your family. I promise that they will love it!

I have adjusted this recipe to feed a smaller group of 4 - 6. Double it for a bigger group.

Classic Lasagna

1 qt. tomato meat sauce

8 oz. lasagna noodles, cooked al dente

15 oz. part skim ricotta cheese

8 oz. small curd low fat cottage cheese

1/2 c. grated Parmesan cheese

1 egg

1 tsp. basil

8 - 10 oz. grated part skim mozzarella cheese

Bring a large pot of water to a boil, salt it, and cook your noodles "al dente" (about 6 - 7 minutes). While they are cooking, make the cheese filling:

In a big bowl, mix together the ricotta, cottage, and Parmesan cheese. Add in the egg and basil and stir well until combined.

When the noodles are done, drain them well and rinse with cold water. I normally DO NOT rinse my pasta, but this helps to keep them from sticking together and makes them easier to handle.

Spray deep 8.5" X 8.5" baking dish with non-stick cooking spray and ladle about 1/2 cup of sauce in the bottom. Start to build your lasagna, by cutting 3 noodles to fit the bottom. Top them with the cheese mixture. I find it works best to put 3 spoonfuls on each noodle and gently spread them to meet, covering the entire noodle. Add a layer of sauce and a big handful of mozzarella, spreading to cover the entire surface. For the next layer, rotate the direction of the noodles, and repeat the procedure above, a layer of cheese, a layer of sauce, a layer of mozzarella. Do it again. Then finally top your lasagna with noodles, sauce and mozzarella. Cover it carefully with some foil sprayed with the non-stick cooking spray -- you don't want to loose any cheese by having it stick to the foil!! Place the dish on a cookie sheet, and bake in a preheated 350 degree oven for 45 minutes to 1 hour. Lasagna is done when it is bubbly around the edges and hot all the way through. I had a little leftover noodles, sauce and cheese mixture, so I made this cute little single serving to freeze for later or to give away. It only has 2 layers, but it's still a hefty serving!

More Comfort Food -- Not my Mom's Meatloaf

When I was growing up, meatloaf was the MOST dreaded dinner my mother served. Where she got her recipe, I'll never know, but it was awful. Terrible. Dreadful. I won't elaborate any further, except to say that for some misinformed reason, she made it with dried onions (not onion soup) and dried green peppers. Think leathery, chewy weird stuff in greasy ground beef. Yuck.

Let me add a disclaimer and say that, for the most part, my mom was a good cook. I made her fried chicken last night, and it simply can not be beat, nor can her chili, which I've blogged earlier. (Search chili at the top if you want to try it.)

Fast forward 15 or 20 years, and now I am the mom, on a budget, trying to figure out another way to serve ground beef. By this time, "hamburger" has progressed, so that you can purchase lower fat versions, and I've been around enough to have eaten meatloaf that actually tastes good. I experimented and finally hit on a recipe that my family loves (with the exception of one son who will remain nameless, like Voldemort). Try MY meatloaf, and forget greasy, nasty extended meat logs with chewy weird stuff.

Meatloaf Your Family Will Love

1 lb. 90% (or higher) lean ground beef

1 egg

1/3 c. minced onion

1/4 c. minced green pepper

1 T. worchestershire sauce

1 tsp. finely minced or grated garlic

1 T. Sauer's* barbeque sauce + 1 more for topping

2 T. V 8 juice

1 T. catsup + 1 more for topping

1 tsp. dried oregano

1/2 c. dried bread crumbs (use plain, but if you have Italian style, use that and eliminate the orgegano, salt and pepper)

1/3 c. parmesan cheese

pinch salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350 degrees.

In a medium to large bowl, mix together ground beef, egg, worchestershire sauce, onion, green pepper, garlic, V8, 1 T. of barbeque sauce and catsup, and oregano. Add in the salt and pepper, bread crumbs and parmesan until the mixture just holds togethera and the vegetables look evenly distributed. Spray a loaf pan with cooking spray and press your meatloaf mixture into it. Top the meatloaf with the remaining 1 T. of catsup and barbeque sauce.

Bake for about 45 minutes until the juices run clear.

Serve it with some roasted vegetables and garlic mashed potatoes, and don't forget to pass the catsup!

*We like Sauer's barbeque sauce because it is not too sweet, but you can use your family's favorite brand.