Spring Time Spring Rolls!

It's not quite spring, but this 66 F degree weather has me hopeful. Spring is my absolute favorite season. There is something so angelic about darkness coming to light. Perhaps it's a combination of lent and Easter along with fresh flowers and plants blooming after a cold season. Nonetheless, I love spring and it is also a blessing that I don't have seasonal allergies!

This spring roll recipe is an easy way to get excited about adding in veggies to your meal. If you have kids, this would be a fun recipe for them to be creative in the kitchen and try new things!

This recipe is so versatile and can be what you make it. Add in veggies, proteins, starches that YOU enjoy! Mix and match different rolls, customize it catered to your taste!

Ingredients:

- Rice paper- I used Dynasty (Pickles wanted some!)

- Starch- I used rice, you can also use quinoa, farro, cauliflower rice, etc

- A combination of chopped veggies: I did hot and cold to add a variety of textures and flavors to our rolls

Raw veggies: carrots, spinach, bell peppers, cucumbers, jalapenos, green onion, avocado

Cooked veggies: zucchini, yellow onion, bell peppers. I sauteed them in 1/2 tbs sesame oil for 10 minutes or so

- Protein of choice: I used chicken because that is what we had on hand. You could also use tofu, tempeh, fish, beef, etc.

- Dipping sauces: I made 2: a peanut coconut milk sauce and a sweet and spicy sauce (see ingredients and instructions for dipping sauces below)

Instructions

1. Cook the starch as instructed. I rinse my rice to remove surface starch from rice grains, which can make them gummy as they cook. Soaking allows rice to absorb water, giving it a leg up on cooking. This helps it to have a better, more even texture, instead of drying out while the inside is not evenly steamed and fluffed.

2. Chop veggies to desired length. I julienned most of mine to make them long and skinny to fit into the roll.

3. Cook veggies to desired taste preference.

4. Cook protein to desired taste preference. For our rolls,I cut the chicken breast in strips and cooked them in 1/2 tbs sesame oil, 2 TBS fresh grated ginger, 3 cloves of minced garlic , 1/2 tbs hoisin sauce and 1/2 tbs of soy sauce and topped with sesame seeds.

5. Once all of your food is prepped take a large bowl of warm water and dip the rice paper in for a few seconds. Once the rice paper is "flimsy," place it on a plate and begin creating your spring rolls!

6. Add in the starch, veggies and protein to your desired taste! Mix and match!

7. Roll the rice paper together, almost like a burrito. I am sure there is a better method out there than what I used.

8. Enjoy with dipping sauces!

Ingredients for the Dipping Sauces

For spicy peanut sauce:

• 1/2 can full fat coconut milk

• 2 tablespoons red curry

• 1/3 cup natural peanut butter

• 1 teaspoon soy sauce

• 1 tablespoon lime juice

• 1/4 cup packed brown sugar

• 1/4 cup warm water

For sweet and spicy sauce:

• 1/4 cup rice vinegar

• 1/2 cup + 1 tablespoon water

• 1/4 cup sugar

• 2 cloves of garlic minced

• 1 teaspoon soy sauce

• 1 tablespoon red pepper flakes

• 2 teaspoons cornstarch

for both sauces mix the ingredients together to thoroughly combine!

We ate these rolls with a side salad! I recommend 2-3 as a serving size.

You can make a bunch and eat them cold throughout the week or reheat them.

The U.S. Dietary Guidelines recommends eating a minimum of 5 servings of veggies a day! This recipe is an easy way to do so!

What counts as a serving of veggies?

Here are some examples:

1. 1 cup of raw carrots.

2. 1 cup of raw spinach.

3. 1 cup of cucumber.

4. 1 cup of raw bell peppers.

5. ½ cup cooked broccoli.

6. ½ cup cooked cauliflower.

7. ½ cup cooked green beans.