Spring Rolls with Roasted Vegetables and Honey-Soy Rice

While I was searching the pantry for the Nutella this morning, I found a package of rice paper wrappers. I completely forgot I had them, so I pulled them out and thought, "I'll figure out a side dish for these". My son walked by and said, "Is this a hint about what's for dinner tonight - are you doing an Asian theme?"

At that point, I had no clue, so I said, "Maybe...". One thing I knew for sure: I was making spring rolls with what I had on hand - no running to the grocery store.

If you've never worked with rice paper wrappers, don't fret. They can be a little intimidating to work with at first, but only if you over-soak them; they become gummy and impossible to roll. They basically dissolve into your countertop. Maybe that's why they put so many in a package...to allow for fails. Haha!

Anyway, I can walk you through these spring rolls with ease. And, hopefully, you won't have to go to the store either (except for, er, the rice paper wrappers).

Note: Once the rice paper wrappers are wet, you need to use them right away. That means, get all your ingredients ready and "on deck" before you dunk them (cook the rice, roast the vegetables, clear the countertop).

Note: I used zucchini, carrots and yellow bell pepper, but any vegetable works! You could also add shrimp, salmon, tofu, chicken, anything.

Spring Rolls with Roasted Vegetables and Honey-Soy Rice

1/2 cup white rice
1 tablespoon butter
1 tablespoon soy sauce
1 tablespoon honey
1/4 teaspoon onion powder
1/4 teaspoon garlic powder
Salt and ground black pepper
2 carrots, peeled and then shaved with a vegetable peeler (so you get long, thin strips)
1 yellow bell pepper, seeded and sliced into thin strips
1 zucchini, sliced into thin strips
1 tablespoon olive oil
6 rice paper wrappers (standard size is about 8 1/2 inches in diameter)

Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Line a baking pan with parchment paper or foil.
In a medium saucepan, combine the rice, butter, soy sauce, honey, onion powder, garlic powder, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add 1 cup of water and bring to a boil over medium-high heat. Reduce the heat to low, cover and cook for 15 to 20 minutes until the rice is tender and the liquid is absorbed. Set aside.
Meanwhile, in a large bowl, combine the carrots, bell pepper, zucchini, and olive oil. Add salt and pepper to taste and toss to coat the vegetables. Transfer the vegetables to the prepared pan and roast for 25 to 30 minutes, until golden brown, stirring once during cooking.
Arrange your rice and vegetables on a large countertop.
Fill a pie plate or cake pan with lukewarm water (or any dish that's bigger than your wrappers).
Working one wrapper at a time, dip the wrapper in the water and let stand for 2 seconds. The wrapper will still be firm, but it will continue to soften, trust me. Lay the wrapper on the counter and line the center with 1/4 cup of the rice and strips of the vegetables (about 3 to 5 strips of each veggie works great). Roll over one side of the wrapper to cover the filling, fold in the sides and finish rolling up (like you making a burrito). Continue with the rest of the wrappers and filling.
Serve warm, room temperature or chilled.

Makes 6 spring rolls