Fresh Vegetable Spring Rolls with Two Dipping Sauces

Recipe courtesy Bobby Flay

Prep Time: 1 hr 30 min

Ingredients

• 1 cup shredded Napa cabbage
• 1 cup shredded carrot
• 1/2 cup finely sliced green onion
• 1 red pepper thinly sliced
• 6 large shiitake mushrooms, grilled and sliced thin
• 2 cups bean sprouts
• 1/2 cup chopped cilantro
• Salt and freshly ground pepper
• 8 very thin 8-inch square spring roll wrappers

Directions

Combine all vegetables in a bowl and season with salt and pepper to taste. Lay the spring roll wrappers on a flat surface, pointed edge toward you. Put a 1/8 of the filling in the bottom third of the wrapper, bring the pointed edge over the filling, fold in the sides tightly. Dab the top pointed edge with water and roll tightly. Serve with sauces.

Garlic-Soy Dipping Sauce:

• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1/4 cup rice vinegar
• 2 tablespoons peanut oil
• 1 teaspoon hot sesame oil
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• Pinch of sugar

Combine all ingredients in a small bowl.

Spicy Peanut Dipping Sauce:

• 2 tablespoons finely chopped garlic
• 1/2 cup smooth peanut butter
• 1/2 cup soy sauce
• 1 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 1 tablespoon hot chile oil
• 1/2 cup cilantro leaves, finely chopped

Combine all ingredients in a bowl and whisk until smooth, add cilantro just before serving.

Cold Rice Noodles with Peanut-Lime Chicken

From the Smitten Kitchen
 
Adapted from David Tanis, via The New York Times

To detail my changes, the original recipe had three sauces/dressings/marinades, a pungent-sweet sauces called a dipping sauce with chiles, lime, garlic, brown sugar and fish sauce, a nuttier dressing with peanut butter, soy, lime juice, rice vinegar and ginger and a marinade for the chicken with garlic, ginger, fish sauce, soy and brown sugar. Because there was so much ingredient overlap and in the interest of trimming down your prep time, I nixed the chicken marinade as a separate sauce in favor of using a combination of the other two (each increased in volume) for a similar effect. I confess that although they are widely available in the great Metropolis of NYC, I made this without the suggested lemongrass and mung bean sprouts because I wanted to see if this could be a totally delicious dish with just ingredients you can find at major grocery stores (it could!). For the chiles, 6 to 8 Thai or 1 to 2 serrano were suggested; I used far less to decrease toddler intimidation. Use what you like according to your heat preferance. We wouldn’t have minded if there were more vegetables than recommended. Next time I might add more of each (cucumbers, carrots and scallions) plus juliennes of sweet red pepper and a handful of lightly cooked green beans, thinly cut on the bias. Finally, although the original recipe suggests three different herbs to finish — mint, basil and cilantro — unless you already have all three around, I think you can get away with just picking your favorite. We used mint fresh from the market that almost melted into the noodles with piercing deliciousness. To see the recipe before I hacked it to pieces, go to the NYT link above.

Serves 4 generously, 6 moderately

Dipping sauce
6 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
6 tablespoons brown sugar
12 tablespoons lime juice
2 garlic cloves, finely grated or minced
Small Thai or Serrano chiles, thinly sliced, to taste

Peanut dressing
3 tablespoons Asian fish sauce
3 tablespoons rice vinegar
9 tablespoons lime juice
3 tablespoons soy sauce
1 one-and-a-half inch chunk ginger, peeled and sliced
6 tablespoons natural unsalted peanut butter
1 tablespoon toasted sesame oil
Pinch of cayenne

Chicken and noodle salad
1 1/4 pounds boneless skinless chicken thighs (about 6)
8 ounces dried rice vermicelli or other rice noodles
2 small cucumbers, cut in 1/4-inch half moons
2 medium carrots, cut in thin julienne
Additional vegetables, as suggested above
Small handful basil or mint or cilantro sprigs, or your favorite of the three (torn or roughly chopped)
4 or more scallions, slivered
1/4 cup crushed or chopped roasted peanuts
Lime wedges (to serve)

Make the dipping sauce: Whisk ingredients in a small serving bowl, making sure to dissolve the sugar. Leave to ripen for 15 minutes. Refrigerate any extra and use within a few days.
Make the peanut dressing: In a blender or small food processor, puree all ingredients to a smooth sauce, about the thickness of heavy cream. Pour into a serving bowl.

Marinate the chicken: Stir together 1/2 the dipping sauce and 1/3 the peanut dressing (you can eyeball this) in the bottom of a low-sided bowl or dish. Add the chicken to the mixture and toss to coat. Let marinate at least 15 minutes.

Cook the noodles: Bring a large pot of water to the boil, then turn off the heat. Add the rice vermicelli and soak for 7 to 8 minutes. (Package directions may vary; check for doneness by tasting.) Drain when noodles are al dente, and cool under running water. Fluff and leave in strainer to drain well.

Cook the chicken: Grill the chicken on an outdoor grill, a stove-top grill pan, or run under the broiler until nicely browned, about 3 to 4 minutes a side. Let cool slightly, then chop roughly into 3/4-inch pieces.

To serve: At this point, you can place everything on a large serving platter, with piles or small bowls for noodles, vegetables, chicken, the dressing and marinade and toppings (peanuts, herbs) and let your family and friends put it together in their own bowls as they wish. Or, you can assemble it for everyone as suggested:

Toss vegetables with 1 tablespoon dipping sauce in a small bowl. Divide the cooked noodles among 4 to 6 bowls. Top each bowl equally with vegetable mixture and chopped chicken. Toss each bowl with 2 teaspoons of each the dipping sauce and dressing, or more to taste (we wanted more). Add the herbs, peanuts and scallions to each bowl and serve with additional dressing and dipping sauce on the side.

Mint Limeade

Yield: 1 drink

1/4 cup mint leaves
2 ounces honey syrup
1 1/2 ounces lime juice chilled club soda, tonic water or seltzer

In 12-ounce glass, muddle mint and simple syrup for about 8 seconds. Add ice and lime juice, then fill with club soda. Stir well and serve.

Fresh Mint and Ginger Lemonade

From Epicurious

Yield: Makes 4 servings

 Ingredients

1/2 cup (packed) chopped fresh mint leaves
1/3 cup chopped fresh ginger
1/3 cup honey
2 cups boiling water
1/3 cup fresh lemon juice
1 1/2 cups (about) cold water

Ice cubes
Fresh mint leaves
Lemon slices

Preparation

Combine chopped mint, ginger, and honey in medium bowl. Add boiling water. Let steep 30 minutes. Strain into 4-cup glass measuring cup, pressing on solids to extract liquid. Add lemon juice and enough cold water to measure 4 cups total. (Can be prepared 1 day ahead. Cover and refrigerate.)
Fill glasses with ice cubes. Add lemonade. Garnish with mint leaves and lemon slices and serve.

Rosemary Lemon Roast Chicken

Ingredients:
- 5lb whole chicken
- 4 sprigs rosemary
- 4 tbsp butter, shaved or cut into slivers
- Salt/pepper
- 1 lemon, sliced into thin rounds
- 4 large carrots, chopped
- 4 stalks celery, chopped
- Olive oil

Directions:
(1) Preheat oven to 425.
(2) Throw chopped carrot and celery pieces into the bottom of a large, high-sided baking/roasting pan. Drizzle with olive oil, and sprinkle with salt/pepper to taste.
(3) Remove entrails bag from inside your chicken, rinse out the cavity, and pat your chicken dry.
(4) Sprinkle a little salt into the chicken cavity, then stuff lemon slices and 3 sprigs of rosemary inside.
(5) Carefully insert half the butter shavings under the skin of your chicken, as well as your last sprig of rosemary.
(6) Rub the rest of your butter over the entire surface of your chicken.
(7) Lightly season your chicken with salt/pepper to taste on both sides.
(8) Lay buttered/seasoned/stuffed chicken breast-side up on top of the bed of carrots/celery.
(9) Stick everything into the oven, and bake for 1hr 30min, or until juices run clear.
(10) Pull chicken out of the oven, tent loosely with foil, and allow to rest for at least 15 minutes before carving.

Warm Chickpea Salad

Ingredients
3 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1 dried red pepper, deseeded and broken into pieces
1 clove garlic, thinly sliced
2 large shallots, thinly sliced
1 pint organic cherry tomatoes, halved
4 cups basic chickpeas or 2 (14-ounce) cans organic chickpeas, drained and rinsed
½ cup stock, water or chickpea broth
3 tablespoons freshly grated Parmesan cheese
3 tablespoons roughly chopped Italian parsley
1 tablespoon chopped mint leaves
Juice of ½ a lemon (optional)
Sea salt, to taste

1. Heat the olive oil over a medium high heat in a sauté pan or large frying pan. Add the red pepper and the garlic. Cook until the garlic starts to turn golden, then add the shallots. Cook until the shallots have softened and started to take color, about 8 minutes. They should not be burned, just golden.
2. Add the cherry tomatoes. Cook until the tomatoes are soft, and have started to caramelize, about 8 minutes. Add a little of the reserved chickpea stock as you cook to keep the pan moist.
3. Add the drained chickpeas, Parmesan cheese, and stock or broth. Mix well and cook until the sauce looks syrupy and the chickpeas are warmed through. Add the chopped herbs. Mix well cooking for another minute. Stir in lemon juice and season to taste. Serve warm.

Roasted Balsamic Beets and Carrots

Ingredients:
2 cups fresh beets, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 4-5 medium beets)
2 cups fresh carrots, cut into 1-inch pieces (about 2-3 carrots)
1 tsp olive oil ½ tsp salt
1 tsp ground black pepper
2 tsp dried thyme
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar

Directions:
Preheat oven to 425 degrees. Peel and cut the beets and carrots and place them in a large bowl. Drizzle with the olive oil and add the salt, pepper, and thyme. Toss to coat. Spread the vegetables on a baking sheet in a single layer. Bake in the preheated oven for 25-30 minutes, until the vegetables are tender and begin to wrinkle, tossing once halfway through cooking. Place the vegetables back in the bowl, add the vinegar and toss to coat. Serve immediately.