Don't Say Diet: Some quick changes make healthier California wrap

By Kathy Manweiler

McClatchy Newspapers

A California Wrap can make a smart meal for people who are watching their weight, but pay attention to the trimmings you pile on that turkey.

Food Network's California Wrap features vegetables and turkey, but the extra calories add up fast thanks to flour tortillas, avocado, a rich ranch dressing and lots of bacon. Eat that wrap for lunch and it will cost you 876 calories and 56 fat grams. Ordering a double cheeseburger plus small fries from McDonald's instead would save you 187 calories and 18 fat grams.

But some simple changes can put this sandwich in a dieter's reach without sacrificing taste. My California Wrap keeps some bacon, avocado and a slimmer ranch dressing while shaving off 64 percent of the calories and 71 percent of the fat.

Choosing low-carb tortillas in place of flour tortillas saves 168 calories per serving, leaving room in this wrap for some avocado.

The original ranch dressing in this wrap also needed a make-over because just the mayonnaise in that recipe loaded 200 calories into each serving. My ranch dressing uses a mix of buttermilk, fat-free milk, light mayonnaise and light sour cream to maintain the flavor of regular ranch while cutting the dressing's calories by 79 percent and slashing the fat by 86 percent.

The original wrap calls for bacon, and I didn't want to leave it out, but I trimmed calories by picking center-cut bacon and using two bacon slices in each wrap instead of three.

You can have one of my California Wraps for 314 calories and 16.5 grams of fat.

Kathy's California Wrap

4 low-carb, low-fat tortillas, such as La Tortilla Factory's

12 trimmed leaves of red or green leaf lettuce, washed and dried

12 ounces oven-roasted, fat-free turkey breast

8 center-cut bacon slices, cooked

1 medium tomato, cored chopped

1 avocado, peeled, pitted and cut into 16 slices

2 teaspoons lime juice

1 cup arugula

½ cup of Kathy's ranch dressing (recipe follows)

Salt and pepper to taste

Toss the avocado slices in the lime juice and set aside.

Wrap tortillas in damp paper towels and microwave on high for 45 to 60 seconds. Lay the tortillas flat on a cutting board.

For each wrap, fan three lettuce leaves on the top three-quarters of each tortilla, then layer 3 ounces of turkey on top, followed by 2 slices of bacon, ¼ of the chopped tomato and four avocado slices. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Top with arugula and 2 tablespoons of ranch dressing.

Fold up the bottom quarter of the tortilla and then start to roll each sandwich into a cone shape. Secure each wrap with a toothpick and serve immediately.

Approximate nutritional analysis per serving: 314 calories, 16.5 fat grams, 1,619 milligrams sodium, 25 grams carbohydrates, 12 grams fiber, 22 grams protein, 27 milligrams cholesterol.

Kathy's Ranch Dressing

1 packet Hidden Valley Ranch salad dressing mix

½ cup low-fat buttermilk

½ cup fat-free milk

½ cup light mayonnaise

½ cup light sour cream

Whisk all ingredients together until smooth and refrigerate for at least an hour before serving.

Yield: 2 cups.

Approximate nutritional analysis per 2-tablespoon serving: 44 calories, 3.3 grams carbohydrates, 202 milligrams sodium, 3.1 grams fat.

Reach Manweiler at (316) 268-6266 or kmanweiler@wichitaeagle.co m. For more Don't Say Diet recipes, visit the Alive & Well Web site at www.wichitaaliveandwell.com .

Do you have a favorite food or popular recipe that you'd like to see made healthier? Send your ideas and recipes, along with a daytime phone number, to kmanweiler@wichitaeagle.com or Don't Say Diet, c/o The Wichita Eagle, Box 820, Wichita KS 67201.