Try Something New

If you've never made your own summer rolls, go get rice papers and try it immediately... you'll feel like a culinary rock star. They are easy to make and can be customized to suit any taste buds, a great thing to remember if you have carnivores and vegetarians living under the same roof (or perhaps just a picky eater). My first attempt was a mixture of carrot, cucumber, green apple, and radicchio. I doused the apples in lime juice, giving them a crisp acidic brightness that balanced perfectly with the bitter radicchio. A roasted pepper dipping sauce laced with soy sauce, ginger and lime completed the dish. Since summer rolls are not fried like spring rolls, once they're wrapped - they're ready! While I initially thought the rice papers would be delicate and hard to work with, I quickly realized their resilience. They offered the perfect opportunity to stretch my culinary wings, experiment with different flavor combinations and really let my inner chef out to play. My challenge to you - try something new. Who knows, you may just create something amazing!

"Cooking is like love. It should be entered into with abandon or not at all." - Harriet van Horne