Collard Wrap with Nut Paté
It's been hectic over here—snow, mom, and dad got sick, snow, baby got sick, travel due to snow, more snow...you get the DRIFT (oh, puns).
I've got laundry to put away, toilets to scrub, eyebrows to pluck, groceries to buy, showers to take...so this one is gonna be short and sweet. And in keeping with the theme of my last post, it probably won't be perfect. I'm too tired to be witty, too impatient to get good photos. But I'm hungry and need to eat, which means you get to see what I've been snacking on.
Lately, when my daily 3:00pm hunger pang hits and I've already eaten lunch, but still HOURS away from dinner, these collard wraps have been my go-to snack. Because 12 almonds just won't cut it.
You can find collard greens in most markets. They're yummy sauteed up with oil and garlic, and make a nice addition to salads when sliced fine. Here I use them as a carrier for a nut pate (recipe below). I wrap 'em up like a burrito and TADA: a snack you can eat with one hand!
I suggest making a batch of the pate ahead of time, so you have it ready to go in the fridge. This is my favorite recipe, but I do deviate from it, based on what I happen to have in the house. You can swap out different nuts and seeds, and toss in fresh or dried herbs for a bit more flavor.
Here’s how to set up the wrap:
1. Start with one large collard leaf. Clean it.
2. Remove tough stem.
3. Spread pate (recipe below) over the center of the leaf. Add other veggies, like shredded zucchini, sprouts, sliced carrots, etc. Pictured below are fermented veggies. I've been using Micro Mama's brand lately, as they're organic, locally made and AWESOME.
4. Wrap it up! This takes surprisingly little finesse. Just go for it.
NUT PATÉ INGREDIENTS
1 cup walnuts, soaked*
1 cup almonds, soaked*
3 stalks celery, roughly chopped
1 red bell pepper, seeded and roughly chopped
1 scallion, roughly chopped
Juice of 1 small lemon
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
INSTRUCTIONS
Purée all ingredients in a food processor. It's really that easy!
*Soaking the nuts make them softer and produces a smoother pate consistency. Learn how soaking nuts makes them more nutritious and easier on digestion!
