Veggie Spring Rolls

 Thai style... they could be sweet, savory, spicy, bold. They could be well thought out and complex, or just whatever leftover veggies you have in the fridge.

There is a new blog I started following called Plant Based Travelmust say I am quite enjoying following this girl's vegan adventures in Berlin. Food and foreign sights?! Gives me really bad wanderlust, but I love it! A few days ago she posted her first attempt at spring rolls, and it inspired me to not only have them for dinner tonight but to also share a little about how to make your own.

The first thing you want to do is get all your ingredients and chop everything pretty thin. This will help in the rolling process. I like to have some sort of creamy ingredient like avocado, hummus, mango, etc., so it's not all crunchy stuff, but the cool thing about spring rolls is that you can put whatever you want in them!

For assembly, start with a flat work surface to roll on, and have a plate ready to set finished rolls. Run your rice paper circle under water for a few seconds, getting both side wet, then let the excess water drip off. Place your paper on the flat surface, and start laying out all the stuffing ingredients. Remember not to put too much stuff or you will have trouble sealing the ends.

By the time you are done placing the filling, the paper should have gotten soft and a bit stretchy. Start by rolling the bottom up and over the filling, then fold the sides, then just roll that baby up like a newborn in a blanket. These are best eaten immediately, as the paper keeps getting softer and falls apart if left too long. ( One time I tried making spring rolls as a pack out lunch for work and ended up eating them all with a fork because the paper had disintegrated by lunch time.)

These ones took on a sort of Mediterranean flavor, since I didn't have any avocado so I used some hummus. I also put red bell pepper, green onion, shaved carrot, tomato, and some leftover spaghetti squash I needed to use up. But like I said, you can put whatever you want in them. Have fun with it!

I find peanut sauce quite disgusting, but here is my go-to sweet and spicy sauce for when I make spring rolls...

Sweet and Spicy Thai Dipping Sauce:
1 T sriracha or chili sauce
2 T agave
2 T rice vinegar
Mix together, makes one or two servings.

What are your favorite ingredients to put in spring rolls??

Amanda