Fresh Spring Rolls with Rutabaga, Turnip, Zucchini filling

Thanks to a wide array of ready-made wrappers, making spring rolls seems like something my 4 year-old sous chef can handle easily these days. Wonderful as an afternoon snack washed down with green tea, or as an appetizer, spring rolls have become a staple at home, nothing to be excited about.

Some weekends, I just make a big batch in the morning, along with dipping sauces, and arrange it on the table like hors d'oeuvres to be munched on and off as we go about our business. On such days, typically, we end up not having any major meals as the spring rolls turn out very satisfying.

As I was sorting through my posts, I realized I haven't shared a recipe for fresh spring rolls, just a version of deep fried and pan-fried spring rolls.

As always, the filling changes each time depending on vegetables of the season, my mood, availability etc. This particular version is D's favorite, thanks to the rather unconventional filling.

Ingredients
For the filling:
1 rutabaga, grated
1 turnip, grated
2 medium carrots, grated
1 zucchini, grated
2 cups finely chopped cabbage
½ medium onion, sliced thin
3-4 cloves of garlic sliced thin
2 Tbsp grated ginger
2 Tbsp kecap manis
1 Tbsp sambal oelek
1 Tbsp coconut vinegar (or seasoned rice vinegar)
1 Tbsp sesame oil or canola oil
2 Tbsp toasted sesame seeds

Dry rice paper (Vietnamese), reconstituted/moistened with damp cloth, for wrappers

Preparation

1. Filling: heat the oil in a pan, add the grated ginger and sliced garlic, sauté a bit and then add the onion, sauté some more; then add the rest of the veggies, seasonings, cover and cook till slightly soft but not mushy; finish off cooking without the lid; allow to cool
2. Add the filling into each soft fresh spring roll wrapper, roll per package directions or like a burrito
3. Serve with home-made peanut sauce and (canned) plum sauce

Plums, plums, plums

The art of Putting Food By has always been a secret indulgence of mine. Despite dirt-cheap jams and sauces flooding the supermarket, there is something extremely fulfilling about gathering the pesticide-free fresh produce from the backyard home-garden and putting it by for the colder months when the yield would be down to nil...

The only initial fear for me was inadvertent poisoning due to botulism if the canning is not done right. I stick to acidic foods which are hard to spoil and usually follow the directions and times for processing. There is nothing like hearing the "pop" as the jar cools after undergoing the boiling water bath canning, when the lid gets sucked in by the contracting air and the jar seals tight. All that's left is labeling with the date and storing it away in the pantry :)

We came back from a long and lovely vacation to find the little patch of Earth on our backyard yielding plentiful sustenance. The plum tree especially was overloaded with ripe purple prune plums. Sweet and juicy as-is, but, I was itching to make good plum jam and Chinese-style plum sauce and can them away...

Plum jam wasn't anything new - just followed the recipe that comes with the Fruit Pectin packet. Except I reduced the sugar, which is not a smart thing usually as the jam won't set well. But, I like the loose spreadable consistency anyway :)

Pit and coarsely chop the plums. Simmer in a little bit of water (about ¼ cup for 6 cups of chopped plums) for about 5 minutes. Crush it or process it in a blender, draining excess water. Return to pot, stir in a packet of fruit pectin allow to come to rolling boil. Skim foam if preferred. Stir in about 6-8 cups of sugar (makes it cloyingly sweet, but jam doesn't set well otherwise) and allow to come back to a boil. Stir well, and can in boiling water bath canner for 25-30 minutes.

I have always loved Chinese Plum Sauce mixed with Sambal Olelek - just the plum sauce by itself that I get at the stores is almost like honey, too sweet. So, I wanted to make some Plum Sauce that was close to my liking and ready to use on busy weekdays.

Ingredients
4 cups pitted chopped plums
½ medium onion, roughly chopped
2 Tbsp freshly grated ginger
4-6 cloves of garlic, maybe more
2 Tbsp Sambal Oelek
----
¼ cup cider vinegar
¼ cup rice wine vinegar
½ tsp Chinese Five Spice
¼ tsp cinnamon powder
1 tsp coriander powder (optional)
1 Tbsp Agave nectar or brown sugar

Combine the first five ingredients and allow to simmer for 10-15 minuted till onions and garlic are tender. Mash or process in a blender. Strain. Return to pot and add the rest of the ingredients to taste. Allow to simmer for another 20 minutes or so. Can in boiling water bath for about 30 minutes.

In addition to luscious sweet plum flavor, the sauce has all the spiciness I enjoy. This is almost like Hot-and-Sweet sauce and can be used as a dip for spring rolls and gyoza.

Just for fun, to serve as simple winter dessert, I decided to can some plums whole. Rather than raw pack, I decided to process them hot in very light syrup (½ cup sugar for 8 cups of water). Despite pricking the skin with fork, some plums were too ripe and the skin split, but that's okay... I boiled them for about 35 minutes for canning.

The plums are all put by for now. I am looking forward to dealing with all the pears this weekend... maybe make some pear sauce (like applesauce), maybe pack them in light syrup...

Chicken in Plum Sauce

Boneless skinless chicken breasts, marinated in a simple marinade. The plum sauce is sort of a sweet-and-sour sauce with ripe red and black plums in season. But, at other times I use prunes and goji berries instead.

Serve with mograbiah tossed with pan-seared carrots and kale.

Ingredients
2 smallish boneless skinless chicken breast
marinade: orange juice, red wine vinegar, ginger powder (or fresh grated), chili powder

for the plum sauce:
4-6 medium prunes pitted, soaked OR Plums, pitted and sliced
1 Tbsp goji berries (optional)
1 Tbsp orange marmalade OR Jalapeño jelly
¼ cup applesauce or pear sauce (if using fresh plums, else can be omitted)
2 Tbsp plain distilled vinegar OR 1 tsp Tamarind paste (for sourness, adjust to taste)
2 Tbsp fresh grated ginger, or 1 Tbsp dry ginger powder
3-4 cloves of garlic finely minced
2 medium shallots diced very finely
1 Jalapeño or Serrano chili, diced finely
salt to taste
1 tsp canola oil



Preparation

1. Sauce: sauté the shallots, chilies, and garlic in a sauce pan, combine the rest of the sauce ingredients and simmer till plums are cooked; mush up the plums and thicken the sauce to desired consistency; dice some of the plums for added texture and presentation. If using prunes, soak in warm water for about 10 minutes, drain and combine with the rest of the ingredients and grind to a fine paste
2. Chicken: Meanwhile, in a skillet, sear the marinated chicken breasts and cook them to desired doneness; I usually slice them thin or pound them to flatten the breasts for marinating; uniform thickness ensures uniform cooking
3. Serve: If desired, remove some of the plum slices from the simmering sauce before mushing them up, to serve on the side. Serve with veggies and rice or couscous or freekeh or mograbiah as done here