Vietnamese Salad Rolls

This make a perfect, light summer meal.  The peanut dipping sauce is the key to uniting the fresh ingredients with an intense flavour.

Ingredients:

• lettuce
• vermicelli rice noodles
• carrots (julienned)
• cucumber (julienned)
• green onions (sliced in 3 inch lengths)
• cilantro
• rice paper

Directions:

1. Cook the rice noodles by pouring boiling water over them and letting them sit several minutes or until soft.
2. Dip rice paper into warm water for approx. 30 seconds, until it is flexible.  Place on counter and begin assembling.
3. First, put your lettuce in the middle of the rice paper, being careful not to place it too close to the edges.
4. Place your rice noodles, carrots, cucumber, green onions, and cilantro on top of the lettuce and gently roll the rice paper up as you would a burrito.
5. Place on a serving dish and continue making more :)

Serve the Vietnamese Salad Rolls with this tasty Peanut Dipping Sauce.

Peanut Sauce Recipe:

• 3/4 c of coconut milk
• 1 c peanut butter
• 2 T soya sauce
• 2 T sweet chili sauce

Combine all ingredients and simmer for 5 minutes or until smooth and creamy.

Homemade Granola

I have been wanting to make my own granola for years and finally actually did it for the first time a few months ago.  Now that we've seen how tasty homemade granola is, and how simple it is to make, I think there's no going back.

I used a recipe that I found here.  I have tried it with walnuts, instead of almonds and I have also used honey, instead of maple syrup and it still turned out great.

Strawberry Blintzes

I just harvested some strawberries from my garden and was trying to think of a meal/dessert I could use them in and remembered how tasty blintzes were.  Here is the recipe:

Strawberry Blintzes consist of 3 parts...the crepe, the cheese filling, and the strawberry sauce.

Crepes:

• 1 c flour
• 2 eggs
• 1 1/2 c milk
• 2 T butter (melted)

1. Whisk all of the ingredients together, making sure there are no lumps.
2. Pour 1/4 c of the mixture into a lightly buttered frying pan on medium heat.
3. Flip after approx. 30 seconds.

Cheese Filling:

• 1 1/2 c cottage cheese
• 4 oz. cream cheese
• 1/4 c sugar
• 1 t lemon juice

Mix all ingredients together.

Strawberry Sauce:

• 2 c strawberries
• 2 T sugar (or maple syrup)
• 2 T water
• 1/2 t cornstarch

Simmer for 3-5 minutes.

Assembling the Blintzes:

1. Pour 1/4 c of the cheese mixture in the middle of the crepe.
2. Wrap it as you would a burrito and place it in a lightly buttered frying pan with the seam side down.
3. Cook for a couple minutes on each side, until golden brown.
4. Pour strawberry sauce on top and enjoy.

Serves 4.

What am I getting myself into?

I have always had a weakness for food blogs.  I am continuously checking for new, delicious meal ideas and I could spend a ridiculous amount of time looking at photos of food.  I take great joy in trying a new meal that may or may not turn out, especially if it involves food from my small garden.  So, I thought I would create this blog as a collection of recipes for myself and also a resource for others if they are interested.