Homemade Appetizers and Take-out

Take-out… is not a bad thing. Sometimes, we just can’t do it all. I got some take-out green curry from a Thai restaurant on my way home from work last Wednesday afternoon. As I was driving, all I could think of was the nice and sunny weather and how perfect it was for a run… but when I got home, having tea and cake with ice cream on the patio (this means sitting outside on camping chairs with a view of the jogging path) seemed like a much better idea. So we sat and read our books and had a nice, quiet time before venturing back inside the house.

As I was getting the take-out, I asked on impulse if they would sell me some rice paper wraps because the Asian store is a long drive away from me. Sure enough, the nice lady managed to talk her mom into selling me a package. There have been recent blog posts on spring rolls that made me itch to make some. Although I have made the fried ones many times before, I have never attempted the rice paper ones.

Rocking out in the kitchen to the pop/hip hop station on Pandora with some dance moves that we won’t delve into… I proceeded to create this.

The vegetable filling inspiration came from Kate’s and Adrianna’s roasted cauliflower recipes and the almond butter crumbs just somehow came together with the ingredients that I threw in. The original plan was to make peanut sauce, but since I did not have any peanut butter on hand, I used almond butter instead. The almond butter that I had was from the bulk section at the store. Therefore, it is fresh ground and not creamy like the commercial ones that come in jars. Hence, the result was almond crumbs instead of almond sauce.     

Here’s a note on how I used the almond crumbs:

The first night I made these, I added the vegetables and the almond crumbs separately.

When I made more wraps from the leftovers for lunch on Saturday, I mixed the almond crumbs with the vegetables in a skillet.

Both ways are great, but DFJ liked the crumbs tossed in the vegetables better.

Roasted Vegetable Rice Wraps with Spicy Almond Crumbles (Makes 10 wraps)

Vegetable Filling                                 

roasted vegetables

½ tsp smoked paprika                                   
½ tsp cayenne
½ tsp cumin
½ tsp salt
2 tbsp olive oil
3 cloves garlic, minced
¼ of a large onion, sliced thinly
½ inch ginger root, grated
½ head of a cauliflower, chopped in small pieces
2 carrots, coarsely grated
1 tsp dried basil, or 1 tbsp fresh basil (add more if desired)

Sriracha (to taste)
4 Romaine lettuce leaves, chopped (set aside in a separate bowl)

almond crumbs

Almond Crumbs

3 tbsp almond butter (fresh ground)

1 tsp chili paste in oil

1 tsp Sriracha

1 tsp lemon juice, fresh

1 tsp brown sugar

Dip
Sriracha
2 tbsp Hoisin sauce






In a small bowl, mix all the spice ingredients and salt together.

Pour olive oil on a 9x13 roasting pan. Toss all vegetables and the spice mixture together, making sure everything gets coated in olive oil and spices.

Roast in the oven at 400 degrees F for about 16 minutes. Remove from oven halfway into the cooking time to stir and return in the oven.

Mix all the almond sauce ingredients well in a small bowl. Heat a small nonstick pan over medium heat. When the pan heats up, place the almond sauce mixture and cook until heated through. The mixture will form into small clumps and turn crumbly. Turn the heat off and set aside.  

Follow directions on the back of the rice wrap package for directions on how to prepare the wraps. I find that preparing them one at a time is easier. Fill a deep, wide plate about ¾ full of water. Heat in the microwave for about 30 seconds. Carefully remove plate from the microwave. Place a rice wrap on the plate with the water, making sure the entire side laying in the water is thoroughly soaked as well as all the edges. Slowly lift it up and flip on the other side. It will turn pretty sticky.  

Move the softened rice wrap to a dry plate and place the vegetable filling in a line off the center. Add the desired amount of almond crumbs next to the vegetables (if almond crumbs are not mixed in the vegetables already). Then add the chopped lettuce. Squeeze a Sriracha line over the fillings (this is optional, but I recommend doing it if you like some spiciness!). Close the ends over the fillings, then gently roll the rice paper wrap like a burrito.    

In a dipping bowl, mix together the hoisin sauce and your desired amount of Sriracha to use as a dip. Heat in the microwave for 8 seconds. 

 Deliciousness!