Paleo Burritos...

"Paleo Burritos" AKA stuffed collard greens
I recently discovered another use for collard leaves, a replacement for our old friend known as tortillas or wraps. After removing the stems and taking a quick 3 to 5 minute bath in boiling water they are ready to go. They are more durable than lettuce and fold over a little easier after being boiled. I have used them to make a variety of lunchmeat and grilled chicken wraps recently and then I got to thinking, couldn't I make a burrito out of them? Once I assembled them, it reminded me more of stuffed cabbage than burritos, call it whatever you want, they were still yummy. So, I'll share the recipe with you.

This recipe should be considered a guide and you can change and swap any way you wish.

Approximately 4 collard leaves
1 lb ground turkey
1/2 yellow onion sliced thin
1 green bell pepper sliced thin
1 4 oz can green chiles
1 15 oz can of diced tomatoes
the following spices can be added to your taste (I don't measure)
chilli powder
cumin
garlic powder
salt
pepper
cayenne pepper

I started by removing the stems from the collard greens, making 2 "wraps" out of each leaf, then placed them in boiling water (just enough to cover barley the leaves no need to fill the whole pot) for about 3 to 5 minutes and then set them aside.

Saute the onion and bell pepper in a little olive oil (you can use whatever fat you want, coconut oil, bacon fat) after about 2 minutes I added the ground turkey and stirred it until well broken up and cooked throughout. Then I added the tomatoes (save about a 1/2 cup to top them with later) and diced chiles. Stir all of this together and then add the spices, allow it to simmer for about another 5 minutes so the tomato sauce heats up and the flavors combine. Turn the heat off, get out your baking dish and line up your collard leaves. Place a spoonful of the turkey mix in the middle of the leaf and then roll it up as you would a tortilla and continue until you run out of leaves or turkey. Once all your wraps are all nestled nice and cozy in the dish, top with remaining tomatoes that you saved earlier (or even some of the turkey mix if you ran out of leaves and still have some mix left) and bake at 375 for about 15 minutes, just enough to warm the burritos up and get those leaves nice and toasty.

Again, the finished product looks more like stuffed cabbage, but the flavors are definitly burrito-ish. :)