Kitchen Creativity

Hi friends! Our kitchen creativity is in full force this week and this recipe is the amazing outcome. Though there are many ingredients and a longer time commitment, the preparation is fairly simple and this recipe reheats well for meals all week! The one preparation that is more complicated is the making of yufka, a Turkish unleavened flatbread similar to a flour tortilla. But trust us, it is SO worth it. With preparation once a week you'll have delicious homemade bread available for snacking, dipping, or wrapping foods of your choice. And since this bread is unleavened, preparation is simpler than leavened, yeast breads. Also a note on shawarma which typically refers to a type of Middle Eastern meat preparation. Creatively, instead we used the traditional shawarma blend of spices in our lentils for an extra kick of flavor because hey, veggie protein needs love and flavor to! So, who's ready to get creative?

Shawarma Spiced Red Lentil & Golden Tofu Wraps
PREP TIME: 45 minutes (+ 4 hours to let yufka dough rest)
TOTAL TIME: 60 minutes (+ 4 hours to let yufka dough rest)
Servings: 6 wraps

Ingredients
Yufka Dough/Flour Tortilla (Adapted from Soframiz by Ana Sortun & Maura Kilpatrick)
1 2/3 cup whole wheat flour, plus more for dusting
1 tsp sea salt
2/3 cup warm water
2 Tbsp extra virgin olive oil

Shawarma Spice Mix
1 Tbsp + 2 tsp ground black pepper
1 Tbsp + 1 tsp ground all spice
1 1/4 tsp ground cinnamon
1 1/4 tsp ground cumin
1 1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 1/4 tsp ground cardamom

Lentils
1/2 cup split red lentils
1/2 cup tomato sauce
1/2 medium yellow onion, diced
3-4 medium carrots, diced
2 tsp coconut oil
1 Tbsp shawarma spice 

Golden Tofu
12 oz extra firm sprouted organic tofu
2 tsp coconut oil
1 tsp ground turmeric
1/2 tsp sea salt
1/8 tsp crushed red pepper flakes

Messaged Kale
6-8 large stalks of organic kale
1 Tbsp coconut oil
1/4 tsp sea salt

To make the yufka dough mix the whole wheat flour and salt together in a large bowl then make a well in the center. Pour the warm water and olive oil in the center of the well then use your hand to combine the wet and dry ingredients until a soft dough is formed. Lightly dust a clean work surface with flour and knead dough for 2-3 minutes or until the dough ball is smooth and elastic. Place the dough back in a bowl with a little olive oil to coat to prevent the dough from sticking to the bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and allow to sit at room temperature for 4 hours or overnight. This dough can be made a day in advance and stored in the fridge after a minimum of 4 hours sitting at room temperature. If stored in the fridge, remove the dough and allow to come to room temperature for 30 minutes. Cut the dough ball in half and divide each half into 3 equal pieces for a total of 6 small ~2 ounce dough balls. Dust a clean work surface with flour and roll each dough ball out as thin as possible, about 8-9" round. Using a seasoned cast iron pan or a non-stick pan set to medium heat cook the yufka on one side until bubbles start to form and the bottom is slightly browned, ~2 minutes. Remove from the pan after the one side has been cooked and place on a plate or sheet pan with a layer of parchment paper on top. You only want to partially cook the yufka dough at this point. Over cooking or cooking both sides can make the yufka too crunchy and hard to work with. Continue to cook each yufka and continue to stack on top of one another with a piece of parchment paper in between each layer. The heat and steam of the cooked yufka will help to keep the wraps soft and pliable as they sit on top of each other. Once cooled to room temperature store cooked yufka in a large plastic bag, sealed.

Rinse the lentils until the water runs clear. Combine lentils with 3/4 cup water in a small sauce pan then bring to a boil. Reduce to a simmer, cover with a lid, and continue cooking for 12-15 minutes or until lentils are soft and the water is absorbed. While the lentils are cooking, add coconut oil to a sauté pan set to medium heat. Add the diced onion and carrots to the sauté pan and cook until soft and caramelized, about 10-15 minutes, then remove from the heat. Once the lentils are cooked, add tomato sauce, cooked onion and carrots, and shawarma spice mix to the pan with the lentils. Stir mixture to combine then set aside.

Drain tofu from package then use your hands to crumble tofu into small pieces, similar to scrambled eggs. Add coconut oil to a sauté pan set to low-medium heat then add the tofu, turmeric, sea salt, and crushed red pepper flakes to the hot pan. Cook for 3-5 minutes stirring often. Remove from the heat and set aside.

Wash, de-stem, and chop kale leaves into thin strips then place in a large bowl. Drizzle 1 Tbsp coconut oil over the kale and sprinkle with sea salt. Use your hands to massage coconut oil and salt onto the kale until leaves are soft and dark green then set aside.  

To assemble the wraps (steps pictured below) begin by placing one cooked yufka dough on a clean work surface. Evenly spread about 1/4 cup lentil mixture on to the yufka dough making sure to leave about 1/4" on the sides. On the left side of the wrap add 1/4 cup golden tofu then fold the left side of the yufka in to the middle. On the right side of the wrap add ~1/4 cup messaged kale then fold the right side of the yufka in to the middle. Finally fold the wrap in half lengthwise. The wrap should now be folded three times. Place wrap into a hot pan and cook on both sides until the yufka dough is slightly golden, about 1-2 minutes per side. Continue this process until you have made all 6 wraps. Place parchment paper around each wrap and slice in half. Serve warm with hot sauce if desired. Store additional wraps in the fridge in an air tight container. Wraps cane be eaten cold, room temperature, or slightly warmed in a hot sauté pan.

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Well, is this recipe creative or what? Starting with the soft and spongy yufka flatbread enveloping an exciting mix of flavors, from the spicy shawarma lentils to the turmeric tofu, and ending with a balance of brightness and texture from the massaged kale. And if you only decide to make one item from the recipe list this week (gasp), make the yufka! Yeah, it's that good.

Enjoy,
Jess and Cecelia