I have a love/hate relationship with raw wraps. I love them because they’re versatile, easy to prepare, and way more fun than sandwiches. I hate them because I have yet to make a homemade raw wrap that was really excellent. They’ve all been too thin, too dry, to thick, or too dense. When I went to Gingersnap’s Organic in NYC, and tasted the stellar reuben wrap, I thought to myself, “what the heck am I doing wrong”?
If there’s one thing I’ve learned about raw wrap-making, it’s that the dehydrating time matters every bit as much as the recipe itself; if you over- or under-dehydrate your wrap, you’ll end up either with mush or a giant, brittle cracker. This means that you have to treat the dehydration process (which is usually gloriously hands-off) more like baking: you have to check in on the wraps, test the texture, and make sure you’re not letting things get too dry. This week, for the first time in CR history, I made raw wraps that were of Gena-approved quality; pliable, yet sturdy. And I made them with one of my favorite flavor combinations: carrot and cumin.
It is my duty to tell you that this recipe will be easiest with a Vitamix or another high-quality blender. You can certainly give it a shot in the food processor (if you do, let me know if it works), but the trick to this recipe was getting a smooth, pancake-batter-like texture out of my wrap “dough,” and I used the Vitamix to do that.
The recipe is extremely simple, as per my own taste, so feel free to embellish and flavor it as you wish. Garlic and cilantro would be nice to through in the “dough”; so would lemon, cinnamon, coriander, or dates. Or, you can follow my lead, and make this one of those delightful, economical, 5-ingredients-or-less recipes. When time is short, such recipes are your best friend.
Gena’s Raw, Vegan Carrot and Cumin Wraps (vegan, gluten free, soy free if you sub sea salt for the tamari)
Makes 6 wraps
2 cups carrot pulp OR grated carrot (if you use the latter, give it a quick squeeze with paper towel to remove a little excess moisture)
1 cup flax meal
2 cups water (+ extra as needed)
1 tbsp cumin
1-2 tbsp tamari
1) Blend all ingredients in a high speed blender till very smooth. Add more water as needed; you want a pancake batter consistency. The moisture will vary depending on your pulp and how dry it is, so you may need to add a lot or only a little more. Use your kitchen intuition!
2) Spread wrap batter evenly onto two Teflex-lined dehydrator sheets. Dehydrate at 115 degrees for about 3 1/2 hours, or until the tops are firm and you can peel the wraps away from the nonstick sheets (if they’re a mess when you try to peel them off, keep dehydrating).
3) Flip your Teflex sheet (with the wrap on it) upside down onto the mesh sheet beneath, and carefully peel back the Teflex till the wrap has been flipped onto its other side. Continue dehydrating another 1 1/2 hours or so, checking in on the wraps every so often. You want them to ultimately be firm and sturdy, but still flexible, and you don’t want the edges to start cracking too much when you bend them (they’ll definitely crack a little no matter what you do).
4) When the wraps have finished dehydrating, you can use a pizza wheel or knife to cut them into 6 rectangles. You can also cut away some of the edges, if they’ve gotten very hard.
5) This is important: store these overnight in a plastic bag or airtight container. This will get rid of some of the brittleness that the wraps may have taken on in the dehydrating process. When you’re ready to use them, simply stuff them with fillings of choice, and get eating!
I chose sweet potato, avocado, red cabbage, greens, and a bit of my red pepper, chickpea, and tahini dressing. The same ingredients, give or take, went into my accompanying salad:
What a great lunch. I have never once been able to devour a raw wrap and give myself a pat on the back for authenticity: this time, I could.
Though I do still often seek out whole grain wraps for their own sake—my personal favorites are the Food for Life wraps—it’s fantastic to have the option of a wrap that is rich in Omega-3 EFAs, as well as full of vegetable power. If you wanted to make these wraps without the dehydrator, you could definitely try various oven settings, or you could try adding some flour of your choice and making them like crepes, in a skillet. Let me know how it goes if you try either method!
Today, I’m giddy because a) I got out of my lab a little early and b) as of next week, I’ll have “graduated” in my volunteer position in pediatric oncology and hematology at Georgetown University Teaching Hospital, to the status of “cuddler and snuggler.” This means I’ll be able to cradle and hold infants and babies who need care. It also means I’ll occasionally get to visit the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) and hold babies there. What a gift!
xo
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On my Xmas list for next year: Vitamix.
They are AMAZING. I would find a way to get it for Easter or something… <3
These sound (and look) fantastic! Carrot and cumin is a failsafe flavour combo. Can’t wait to try them out in the new dehydrator 🙂 Quick question – have you ever used non-stick parchment paper? My paraflexx sheets haven’t arrived yet and It’s all I have on hand
Sure! That’ll work.
Since I am so new to this, and absolutely love these recipes, would somebody please recommend a dehydrator to me. I am absolutely clueless as to what to look for. I have a feeling that the one I’ve seen on an infomercial in the middle of the night isn’t the best. I’d really appreciate it. This wrap looks soooo good.
First of all, Gena, I will say this again: I don’t know how you make the time! You are fantastic! Thank you for always giving us updates no matter how busy you are. I love your recipes! 🙂
Alli, I know the feeling of being lost and not knowing which appliance to buy. I recommend the Excalibur dehydrators. They have an even flow of air, have good sized trays, and have a temperature control. There is another brand of dehydrators that just came out that have gotten rave reviews and is way more high tech called the Tribest Sedona dehydrator. It’s more expensive but if those features are what your looking for, go for it! I have been using my Excalibur for about 2 years and love it! Hope that helped! 🙂
If I don’t have a dehydrator can I just cook them in a non stick pan or in the oven instead? I know they won’t be technically raw then, but as a student don’t know if I can splash out on a dehydrator! 😛
Hey Emily! Low oven temperature should work well, though in fairness I haven’t tested it yet, so I can’t promise the results. If I try this myself I will let you know!
Ali, Gena suggests which kitchen appliances (dehydraator’s) she recommends in this post. I have found this article to be very helpful.
http://www.thefullhelping.com/my-kitchen-tools/
TSM. I’ve had mine for ~9 years, and it’s performed perfectly and is still going strong. I see that they’ve made design improvements since that time, so you’ll be the beneficiary of that. The TSM dehydrataors are made from stainless steel (no plastic parts to off-gas onto your food), made in the U.S., of stainless steel that is NOT made in China (I corresponded directly with TSM to get assurance of this). I’m guessing the company — which previously aimed its marketing at people wanting to use the units to make meat jerky — is surprised that they have an entirely different customer base of people interest in making healthful vegan foods.
BTW — I do not use Teflex sheets or other synthetic materials for drying my items. I use parchment paper and it works just fine. Good way to eliminate more possibly deleterious substances from contact with your food.
This looks wonderful, great use for carrot pulp! I may need to break my juicer out to try this recipe! 🙂
I feel the same way about raw wraps, as far as making my own. The few attempts I’ve made in that arena are usually more chewy and I don’t know what the deal is – maybe they’re too much on the liquid side. I’m encouraged by your post though and plan to make these! Thanks. Great pictures too! 🙂
Way to go on the wraps girl! They look awesome! As do all the yummy things that you have stuffed them with! I agree, herbs would be amazing in there too, and it would give it nice flecks of colour if you just chopped and stirred them in. So awesome about your “graduation” to “cuddler and Snuggler” Love it! Although, I have to admit, I would be totally afraid to break the precious little ones!
drools. well this would make me rethink lunches a couple times a week if i could make wraps like that! congrats on ‘graduating’ and enjoy the nicu! it’s a sad place but also a very joyous one. your heart will tear to pieces i’m sure but it’s an experience you’ll never forget 🙂
Gena these look SO amazing. Wow. I do not yet own a dehydrator but I am planning to get one soon, and something tells me this is the first recipe I will try.
I adore wraps so much, they are the best lunch! It’s so great for transporting to uni too.
Thank you for sharing
Gena, this wrap (and fillings!) looks freaking fantastic! I can’t wait to try it out! 🙂 I love the pretty orange hue the carrots confer to the wrap.
The wraps look awesome! I love the interior, colorful, bright and cheery veggies you put in.
I need to get some carrot pulp. Oh yeah, I may need to brush off my juicer in order to do that. 🙂
I made sweet potatoes today. Something I know you like. I was wondering if you call yams sweet potatoes because I feel like most people mislabel what’s really a yam as a sweet potato. Just curious since I know you know your food science and love the sweet taters.
You know, I’ve been guilty of sloppy usage of the two words 🙂 However, I do try to use them accurately — though I think that these were actually yams. Oops!
cuddler and snuggler! I love it! What lucky little babies!
What great reasons for giddiness! I love to think of you as a cuddler and snuggler.
When I see post titles in my blogger reader, I can often guess whose the post is before that part comes up. I knew this was going to be one of yours! Your current carrot kick delights my carrot-loving little heart!
love
Ela
Oh you’ve done it again Gena! Will be trying these! THanks 🙂
Gena, my dear… you are absolutely amazing! You are so creative! I look forward to making these wraps! Will be a new experience. I just called my husband in from the other room to see your pictures in this post. He looked over my shoulder and said, “those look pretty good!!!” He’s right! Frequently he hears about your articles so it’s become normal for him to hear your name spoken often around here. 🙂
Oh how wonderful for you and those precious little ones! Cuddler and Snuggler…that title just epitomizes how you nourish everyone with whom you iinteract.
The Food for Life wraps are a favorite in this household too, though I wish I had the patience (and dehydrator) to make yours – they look like winners.
Congrats on both accomplishments, Gena! xo
These wraps are really beautiful, Gena. The color from the carrot with the purple cabbage is amazing! You make such gorgeous food!
“Cuddler and snuggler” is the best job title! I need portable meals for class this semester… if I ever get up the energy to make my own raw wrap, this’ll be the one 🙂
Congrats on making a successful raw wrap! I have read that you can also use psyllium husk to make raw wraps more pliable, although I haven’t tried it myself.
Oh, Gena, the recipe I’ve been waiting for all my vegan life (so, um, 2 years)! I’m gong to make some major carrot juice this weekend so I can try these out!
Why would you need to squeeze out moisture from the grated carrots if you’re just going to be adding water to the mixture anyway?
Hi, as i am reading this post, that same question came to my mind. Did you get an answer?
That’s how I tested the recipe, so I didn’t want to take any risks telling readers to do differently. In retrospect, I didn’t totally think it all through!
I expel the juice from the carrots cuz, I LOVE to drink it!!!! lol
Would these work with chia seeds as opposed to flax?
Sure!
i agree with you–i have yet to find a raw wrapper that is really so amazing–i hope this carrot cumin one does the trick!….i am beginning to think i don’t like the taste of flax–any alternatives to using flax?
Ground chia will work!
Would you recommend using mixed juice pulp instead of straight carrot? I realize it will taste different, just wondering. I very rarely drink carrot alone, but I guess I could collect the pulp separately from the rest of the veggies, if needed.
As soon as I saw this recipe I HAD to whizz out and buy carrots – I’ve been after an economical wrap recipe for ages! Most recipes have too many ingredients to make it worthwhile. I used grated carrot and baked them in the oven, it took quite a while, maybe 45 mins but I kept taking them out to check and flip them. The fridge tip definitely took away the brittleness! Mine probably weren’t raw, but they were still delicious and make a nice lighter change from wholemeal wraps. Yum yum yum!
I don’t have a dehydrator. Is there a way to dehyrdate these in an oven?
Hmmm, I just made these today, and had some problems. They separated and got big holes in the middle. I was wondering if you soaked the flaxseed in the 2 cups of water, or just straight up ground the flax seed with the carrot pulp? I will def try these again, to see if I come closer.
Hi, I can not wait to try this wrap. I am use to make a tomato one that i love but need a change !
Why do you need to squeeze the carrot if you are going to add water in the recipe?
Thank you for your recipe 🙂
Annabel
Made these but they turned out more like chips – did them on the lowest setting on the oven (about 50 degrees C)…..not nec a bad thing and they taste delicious. Am trying them in the airtight container but I suspect they will still be chips….oh well I guess they will be nachos rather than the quesadilla’s I had planned… 🙂
I’m allergic to flax. Would chia seeds or almond meal work?
Thanks
Almond meal probably won’t, but I do think ground flax would work, Amelia! Hope the recipe turns out nicely for you.
This looks wonderful!!! 🙂
Hi Gena, quick question: I have had bad experiences with my wraps as well, I notice that you say to squeeze the carrots if you grate them, but wouldnt it be better not to do that? To leave the flavorful grated carrot with its liquid in tact and just reduce the amount of water you add to the recipe? Seems like it would add more flavor that way. Please give me your thoughts. I want my wraps to come out right for once! xo Thank you!
Hi Francis!
I’m sure that would work, too. But I haven’t tried it and no longer have a dehydrator, so I can only vouch for the recipe as it was created. No matter what, I hope it works out for you.
G
I know this post is from a few years ago but I have a question about the wraps…all of them, raw or not…is it safe to ship them in the mail?
I think it it were overnight or two-day shipping you’d be OK, but I wouldn’t recommend that you ship anyplace that would take more than a few days.
I look forward to making them! Thank you.
Can I use flax seeds instead of the flax meal? I have Blendtec.
Thank you in advance.
Yes! If you grind them in the BlendTec, they’ll be just fine.