Raw Spring Rolls

Mmmm...spring rolls!This is probably my hubby's favorite and I love them too! We grow lots of sprouts in our SproutMaster trays (we have a big stack of 3, so we almost always have a big batch of sprouts available. One of my favorite ways to consume them (besides putting a big handful in our green smoothies) is to make spring rolls. The rice paper to roll them is not raw, but you can use collard greens instead if you prefer.

The way we learned how to make spring rolls was actually a fun stroke of uncoincidental, unaccidental destiny, although it doesn't always appear that way at first! Michael and I were flying to Maine to visit our family, as grandpa was nearing the end of his time in this body. Uncle D rang to let us know a NorEaster? was about to hit and we should probably try to change our flight because we were sure to get stuck en route. After hours on the phone with the airlines, we could not change without huge fines and they had no expected weather delays, so we played the game and got on our plane, until we got stuck in D.C. overnight. Luckily, we had called our amiga to let her know we might get stuck. She picked us up from the airport and we got to spend the entire next day in awe of the Smithsonian Museum of Natural History and then she made us spring rolls for dinner. It was such a gift to be able to visit and the gift that keeps on giving because we love to make spring rolls now!

My routine is: get the goodies ready... fresh sprouts, grated carrot, perhaps sliced red peppers, fresh mint and basil, maybe sliced cucumber. Boil a teapot of water and pour in a bowl wide enough to dunk the rice paper until pliable. The rest is exactly like rolling a mini-burrito...a little sticky and delicate at first, but my 7 year old niece helped me roll them and did a great job! I make a yummy dipping sauce with almond butter, lime juice, sea salt, apple cider vinegar, a little onion and garlic and enough water to stir into dipping consistency. This time, we cut nori sheets into quarters and wrapped the finished roll in nori - yum and beautiful! Give it a try!