Healthy Collard Wraps
Growing up in the South, collard leaves always reminded me of giant elephant ears. Braised and stewed, the greens would get melt-in-your-mouth tender and deliciously sweet. I wasn’t too concerned about how healthy they were. Rather, I loved how they looked on a big plate next to some grilled corn, baked beans, and barbecue.
Now, though, these same beloved greens are the perfect wrap for a healthy, gluten-free, plant-based lunch. Low in calories and full of that tender-sweet flavor, they are ideal for a light meal. Prepping them to use as wraps requires a few simple steps:
- Remove the thick stems
- Steam the leaves until tender, 3-5 minutes
- Shock in cold ice water
- Drain and squeeze off excess moisture
Spread on some hummus, shredded vegetables, and roasted peppers for a simple filling. Even just some frozen peas and a few slices of avocado would work. For a hearty meal, I like this raw Hemp Seed fiesta filling. It’s got corn, avocado, jicama – healthy fresh flavors.
You can pack these into your lunchbox or carry-on for an easy meal-on-the-go. Or enjoy them for a dinner for a light meal. Roll your sleeves up and roll your collards!
Medium | Servings: 4 | Ready In: 20 minutes | Yield: 12 wraps
These delicious wraps are too good to be true! Big collard leaves are quickly steamed for healthy, gluten-free wraps. A spicy plant-based hemp seed fiesta filling is full of interesting textures and flavors from crunchy jicama, creamy avocado, sweet corn, and bright lime. Prepare your filling while the collards steam for quick, easy preparation. Make a batch of these for healthy, transportable vegan lunches. If you love these, you’ll also love: Easy Raw Veggie Rainbow Veggie Nori Rolls, Southern Collard Dolmades with Smoky Sweet Potato Puree, and Quinoa Fiesta Bowl with Beans, Pico de Gallo, and Avocado Lime Dressing.
Ingredients
- 2 bunches Collard greens (about 12 leaves)
- 1 red or orange bell pepper, diced
- 1 cup frozen corn kernels, thawed
- 1 medium jicama, diced (about 1 cups)
- 1 avocado, pitted and diced
- 2 tablespoons fresh chopped cilantro
- ½ cup Hemp Seed hearts
- 1 lime, juiced
- Salt and pepper, to taste
How it’s Done
To Steam the Collard Wraps:
Place about an inch of water in a wide pot and bring to boil over high heat. Use a paring knife to cut out the woody stalk of the collard leaves, trying not to cut too deeply into the leaves. The bigger the collard leaves, the better.
When the water is boiling, place the collard leaves in the pot. Cover and let steam until completely tender, about 3-5 minutes. When the collard leaves are tender, they will turn a dark, green color. If the collards are in one big stack, be sure to check that even the middle leaves have steamed. If these middle leaves are still bright green, they probably need a bit longer to steam.
While the leaves steam, prepare a large bowl with ice water. This is your ice bath. When the collard leaves are done steaming, immediately drain them and transfer to the ice bath. Allow to sit in the ice bath until cool, about 2-3 minutes.
While the collards steam and cool, work on the ingredients for Fiesta Hemp Seed filling.
To make the Fiesta Hemp Seed filling:
In a medium bowl, combine all of the ingredients for the filling. Season with salt and pepper. Taste to adjust seasoning.
To assemble the Collard Wraps with Fiesta Hemp Seed Filling:
When the collards have cooled, drain them from the ice bath. Use your hands to squeeze out as much water as you can.
Spread a leaf out into a single, flat piece. Portion about 1/3 cup of the Fiesta Hemp Seed filling onto the leaf. Roll up the end, tuck in the sides, and keep rolling all the way to the seam, just as you would a burrito. Repeat with the remaining collard leaves and filling.
Serve immediately or refrigerate for up to 5 days.
If you love these, you’ll also love: Easy Raw Veggie Rainbow Veggie Nori Rolls, Southern Collard Dolmades with Smoky Sweet Potato Puree, and Quinoa Fiesta Bowl with Beans, Pico de Gallo, and Avocado Lime Dressing.
Chef Katie’s Tips
Budget-Friendly Tip: Hemp seed hearts can be expensive, especially if you purchase a big bag. However, many grocery and health food stores will have hemp seeds available in the bulk section. You only need a small amount for this recipe, so buy just what you need and save some money.
Other Seeds: If hemp seeds aren’t available, you can substitute with other seeds. Pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds, and sunflower seeds would all work. Even canned black beans or frozen green peas would be great!
Raw version: You can make a raw version of this recipe by using raw collard leaves. Skip the step of steaming the collard leaves. Instead of frozen corn, use fresh corn on the cob, cut off the ear. 1 ear of corn yields about 1 cup kernels so you’ll need one ear of corn for this recipe.
Extra Fiesta Hemp Seed Filling: This filling also works great as a filling for Bibb lettuce cups or healthy tacos. I even love it over chopped Romain for an easy, healthy fiesta salad.
Nutrition Facts
| Nutrition Facts | |
|---|---|
| Servings 4.0 | |
| Amount Per Serving | |
| calories 253 | |
| % Daily Value * | |
| Total Fat 15 g | 23 % |
| Saturated Fat 2 g | 9 % |
| Monounsaturated Fat 5 g | |
| Polyunsaturated Fat 7 g | |
| Trans Fat 0 g | |
| Cholesterol 0 mg | 0 % |
| Sodium 88 mg | 4 % |
| Potassium 496 mg | 14 % |
| Total Carbohydrate 22 g | 7 % |
| Dietary Fiber 10 g | 39 % |
| Sugars 4 g | |
| Protein 11 g | 22 % |
| Vitamin A | 78 % |
| Vitamin C | 123 % |
| Calcium | 16 % |
| Iron | 19 % |
| * The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA. | |
Shopping and Gear List
- Manitoba Harvest Organic Hemp Hearts Raw Shelled Hemp Seeds,
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