Lettuce Wraps: Part stir-fry, part salad...whole lot a’ goodness

I love PF Chang’s as much as the next girl, but I can’t get out of there without setting the scale back by at least 3 pounds (damn you, Kung Pao Scallops! Why must you contain nearly 1200 calories!?!). So in an effort to be healthy, instead of ordering out, I’ve ‘invented’ my own Lettuce Wraps recipe to suffice when I have a hankering for Chinese.



Recipe:
1 teaspoon toasted sesame oil
½ of a medium onion, sliced
2 scallions, white and green parts sliced thinly
1 clove garlic, minced
5 baby carrots, julienned
¼ red bell pepper, thinly sliced
¼ green bell pepper, thinly sliced
1 large chicken breast, cut into bite-size pieces, seasoned with salt and pepper
1 serving whole wheat spaghetti noodles
¼-½ cup peanut dipping sauce (recipe follows)

Peanut Dipping Sauce (makes a little more than ¼ cup)
Scant ¼ cup chunky natural peanut butter
2 Tablespoons low sodium soy sauce
1 Tablespoon rice vinegar
1 teaspoon honey
one pinch each salt, pepper, garlic powder, ground ginger, crushed red pepper flakes
1 Tablespoon fresh cilantro, chopped
Stir all ingredients together.

Cook spaghetti according to package directions. While pasta is cooking, heat the sesame oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat.
Add the onions, scallions, garlic, carrots and peppers and stir-fry quickly for about 2 minutes. Add the chicken cubes. Stir frequently until no longer pink (about 7 minutes). While the chicken is cooking, prepare the peanut sauce. When chicken is cooked through, add it to a bowl with the drained spaghetti and the peanut sauce. Mix well until all the pasta is coated with sauce. Garnish with a generous serving of chopped cilantro and sliced scallions and serve with a head of romaine or iceberg lettuce for wrapping the chicken-pasta mixture. Serves 2.