When you think of the holidays maybe you don’t think of Buffalo Chicken Wings but uniquely flavored boneless wings are one of my favorite temptations year round. I seriously love me some Buffalo Chicken Wings but how on earth can you make these zesty temptations healthy?
How can you make a healthy version of Buffalo Chicken Wings?
The answer is lettuce wraps. But first, how can you delight in a Buffalo Chicken Wing lunch without, well, all that guilt? My love of Buffalo Chicken Wings has led me down some interesting roads and grocery isles. Yes, I have tried keto Buffalo Chicken Wings and Cauliflower Buffalo “Chicken” I have to say the Cauliflower version is not bad for having half the carbs. My go-to favorite boneless Buffalo Chicken Wings for this recipe are the wings from the Von’s Deli they bake daily or the frozen Frank’s Red Hot Sauce version you can find at Grocery Outlet. I’ve honestly tried making my own keto version of Buffalo Chicken Wings with almond flour and potato starch and the perfect recipe is still a work in progress. I love my Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wraps but they are exactly carb-free. Here, I make up for a few extra carbs by wrapping these in a lot of lettuce.
Tendinitis, a holiday delight
Baby it may be cold outside but this healthy hiker is stuck on the couch with tendinitis! What the actual White Chocolate Fudge is this holiday BS? This late December has been the only time in my life I have been blessed with tendinitis and I pray it never comes back! I guess the timing could have been worse as I have had no business whatsoever this holiday season so far. Here in this southern California ski town we have no snow so far this holiday season.
Luckily for me, I always finish my Christmas shopping crazy early. I was done Christmas shopping by the second week of December Christmas 2024. That was long before my left cankle was extremely swollen.
Our ski town Big Bear Lake has had an incredibly dry winter so far. There was no snow to be seen anywhere in the valley Christmas season 2024! Lake Tahoe got five feet of snow in four days and yes, I have snow envy!
So instead of hiking with tourists and taking selfies with my pup in the fresh snow, my only entertainment while stuck on the couch for ten days now is very naughty Norwegian Forest cats who keep trying to break into Christmas presents.
By the time this holiday season is over, I pray I will be able to hike and snowshoe pain-free again. And when I’m able to get back to working out again, it will be Lettuce Wraps for lunch and dinner. Yes, I’ll be putting down the Christmas Rum Cake and picking up a Buffalo Chicken Lettuce Wrap. The key to making your chicken taste oh-so- great is to heat it up in your air fryer. Use good quality blue cheese dressing and your favorite Buffalo sauce.
Air Fryer Buffalo Chicken Blue Cheese Lettuce Wrap
1 package Frozen buffalo chicken (Frank’s Red Hot is the best brand)
Do not buy the TGIF brand! It’s terrible
1 head of romaine lettuce
1 stalk celery, chopped
1 ripe avocado
Parchment paper
1/8 cup buffalo sauce
The best blue cheese dressing
2 teaspoons lemon juice
1/2 a green onion
2 teaspoons half-and-half
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1/8 cup fresh parsley
3teaspoons of water
salt and pepper
So just how easy is it to make a Buffalo Chicken Wing lettuce wrap at home?
- Cut your iceberg in half. Remove the stem part with a knife.
- Lay out your parchment paper in a diamond shape.
- Pick out the best lettuce pieces. Cover your parchment paper in a thin layer and then you can start layering your toppings. Basically, cover the entire parchment paper in the lettuce. The more lettuce you use, the easier it will be to build your wrap later. And come on, all those veggies are very low in calories and good for you!
- When you layer on your other ingredients, leave space on the edge of your lettuce for the roll up process.
- How you roll up the wrap is difficult to master. Watch this YouTube video to learn how!
- They say you have to use iceberg for this but I find you can do it with a head of butter lettuce or a head of romaine or green leaf as well.
Comments
This looks so yummy! Sorry about the tendinitis. That is no fun. Stopping by from Talking About It Tuesday.
These sound so good… and I don’t even like buffalo chicken! LOL. I hope you are able to get back to hiking soon.