Fresh Spring Rolls with Peanut Sauce...

My diet most of the time comprises of raw fruits, veggies, nuts, seeds, nut milks, and yummy fruit based desserts.....although sometimes I do crave something soft and bread-like to sink my teeth into. These fresh spring rolls are naughty enough for me to get that texture, but in reality they're just a raw food delivery system.  You can certainly use these without the sauce but if you don't mind eating non-raw food items once in a while, this dip is super high in protein and will keep you feeling full and satisfied with just a little.  

The staples are the skins and sauce, and then whatever you choose to put in there is up to you.  Here are some ideas, all julienned or cut into some sort of strip:

scallions, cucumbers, carrots, squash, tomatoes, avocado, lettuce, cabbage, red radishes, daikon, lettuce, kimchee, hemp seeds, sesame seeds, sunflower seeds, pea shoots, sprouted grains and beans, any kind of green sprout, and on and on...

If you wanted to get your kids to eat their salad, you can even stuff it into these convenient pouches and zip them out the door on the way to a game.  They're light and yummy.

The three secret ingredients to any spring roll are the herbs:  cilantro, basil and mint.  If you want it to taste authentic, I recommend you use them.  If you just want something quick and simple (like me after a hard day), then feel free to do with or without.

The secret to building these is preparation...make your sauce first (it keeps well), and then cut all of your veggies and have them ready.  Then soak the rice skins, fill, fold, and chomp.  Timing the soaking of the skins is also important.  When you dip the skins in water, you want them to soften up a little bit, but not too much.  Too limp makes them fall apart, and too rigid makes them unbendable, so do a few first until you get the hang of it.  I've also found that some brands, I can pick them up when they're still somewhat rigid, fill them, and they loosen up on the mat (I tried this with other brands, thinking it would do the same, and unfortunately, I ended up with a rigid skin that wouldn't fold).  Again - before you go out and make these for your guests, experiment first :)

Peanut sauce (in clockwise order, starting at the 9:00 position):

2 tablespoons tamari

1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar

2 chopped garlic cloves

2 tablespoons raw honey

1 tablespoon jalapeno pepper

1 teaspoon grated ginger

1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil

(not shown) 3/4 cups of home made (or organic, store bought) peanut butter

Blend all ingredients in a food processor.  Begin to drizzle roughly 1/4 cup plus 2 tablespoons of water until the mixture becomes lighter in color and fluffier.  You can make this as thick or thin as you want, adding water to your liking.  

To make the spring rolls:  

Dip one rice paper in water until it turns soft, and place on your sushi mat (or a cutting board).  

Fill the bottom third of the rice paper with veggies, 

leaving a little bit of empty rice paper at the very bottom 

(you'll use this to fold over and attach to the top portion of the rice paper).  

Fold the bottom of the paper over the veggies making sure the veggies are tight inside 

(the skin is relatively stretchy).

Fold both sides over the veggies, making sure the veggies are tight.

Continue to roll up until the whole roll, making sure the veggies are tight.

Serve with peanut sauce, and enjoy!