Wraps for the Week

I like a fast and easy lunch that I can just grab out of the fridge and throw in my bag on my way out the door. Bonus points if it’s teetering on the healthy side. I have a little inventory of go to recipes and I pick which one I want to use based on what’s already in my fridge come Sunday afternoon. This week I went for wraps because I had a cucumber  that I needed to use. Makes sense, yes?

I know wraps seem a little boring but it gave me a chance to brush up on my knife work.  So I julienned the cucumbers like my life depended on it. My little hack is too cut a small slice along one length of the cucumber. This lets you balance it when you cut. And then you can just cut across the slices to get your matchstick shape.

Next I pulled a jar of pickled peppers out of the fridge. These are homemade sweet pickled peppers that peter piper did not pick. But my friend, Claire, and I made them for her husband’s birthday a while back. The next time I have a pickling party I’ll be sure to take pictures and put it up on here! Anyway, I julienned these as well.

My last knife related prepping step was to chiffonade some fresh basil I keep on the window sill above my sink. I know it sounds a little pretentious to say out loud that you are going to chiffonade your leaves. But honestly it is the best way to thin slice a leafy thing. And it is extremely easy. Lay your basil leaves one on top of the other and roll them up tightly. You will be amazed at how easy it is to slice into thin strips when you do it this way.

Once the basil (or any herb is thinly sliced) I sprinkle some salt and smoosh everything together. This bruises the leaves and seasons your herbs so the flavor really pops. Now comes time for assembly. I suggest the assembly line method so that you can get all your wraps made quickly and ready for the fridge. I start my wraps with a spreadable cheese. I had Aloutte’s garlic herb cheese already in my fridge so that’s what I used.

Next layer your sliced meat and cheese onto your wrap. For these wraps I used honey smoked turkey and Swiss cheese because they are Lloyd’s favorite and therefore what was available. And then add in all your beautifully sliced veggies. I also have quite a wide chopping board so I was able to do two at a time.

Roll em up, cut in half and package them any way you want. I made 6 and they should last through Wednesday. The cucumbers will stay nice and crunchy and the wraps don’t get soggy like bread would. The spreadable cheese really acts as a barrier, preventing the the veggies and deli slices from making your wrap slimy.

The beauty of this recipe is how endlessly versatile it is. Use whatever deli meat and cheese you want, any type of wrap, whatever your favorite veggies are (or just whatever you have at hand). The one thing I wish I had done was sprinkle on some hot sauce prior to wrapping. Because everything is better with Cholula!

Let me know in the comments what you would make your wrap with!