Cutting vegetables up into matchsticks.

Possibly the most comforting activity of all time.  It brings me peace, restores my balance.  The simple rhythm of chopping vegetables has been absent around here for a while.  Why?  Well, it’s been a bit hectic.  There was a wedding!  It was simply perfect.  I have quite a few details to share from it, but for now we just need to start eating healthy whole food meals again, which require some chopping, to give us the strength and energy to stay on top of this new married life together.

Oh, I know, I’m being a bit dramatic, but there is some truth to the matter. That wedding threw us into a new arena. We have never hosted a dinner party for 12 and all of the sudden 150 were expected. The details were endless and our schedules were completely thrown out of sorts. It was amazing to have all of our family and friends in town. We will never grow tired of the memories made and the time shared. We soaked it all in, and wouldn’t change any of it for the world. Then it was off on a honeymoon. It was a great vacation unlike any we’ve ever taken. Then, upon our arrival home, we were plopped right back in the middle of our lives as they were before this whole fiasco only with piles of reception decorations, some amazing gifts, and the duty of rearranging to get all of our things into one home. Our home. It’s an amazing journey and one we’re so excited to work on for the rest of our lives.

These spring rolls were just the thing for a quick weeknight dinner before the sorting and organizing and putting away began. Weeknights are tough for us in the motivation department. I hope you can relate. We work long days and when we get home, food is the priority. Quick meals help us maximize the time we have to be productive in the evening and I’m learning to appreciate that. Good, quick food. As I expand my horizon to creating good, quick food I’ll share it. This idea for spring roll fillings actually comes from another blogger, www dot mynewroots dot org. I recently found it and it’s full of amazing recipes and great nutritional information. The recipe is here, so I won’t repost it, but want to direct you to it. It’s very easy, quick and full of veggies. Rice paper should be by the Asian stuff in the grocery store, by the noodle bowls and soy sauce. It’s surprisingly easy to work with. Yes, when wet it sorta sticks to..everything, but it pulls apart without ripping usually and rolling it up covers a multitude of wrinkles or small tears. This time I just added a couple handfuls of diced chicken, next time I’ll go for some larger pieces of rotisserie chicken both for flavor and for added density so this meal can stand on it’s own. Here are the basic steps:

Chop 2 carrots and 1 small sweet potato into matchstick sized pieces.

Add 1/4 cup Sesame seeds into a dry skillet and toast over medium heat.

Add oil to skillet. Add in a bit of agave (or I used honey) and ginger (I used ground) and cook for 1 minute. Add the matchstick-ed veggies (and cooked chicken, if using) and stir fry until just starting to soften ~5 mins.

Remove from heat and add in a squirt of lemon juice and the Sesame seeds.

Submerge 1 rice sheet at a time in a bowl of water for about 30 seconds, until soft. Put on a flat surface and add in a scoop of veggies, try to line them up horizontally on the sheet.

Add other toppings. The combination of ciliantro, cucumber, and avocado we used was delicious. I also added in the almond butter sauce at the same link as the recipe above. (store bought peanut sauce would work well here too).

Fold the top down and the sides in, then roll the contents over to complete the burrito wrapped spring roll. Serve with extra sauce for dipping.

Enjoy!