Spring Rolls with Thai Nut Sauce

In case you've wondered I've been recently, and why my posts have been, well, non-existent, it's because I took on a temporary teaching job for the 1st term of school. So everything else (well almost everything else) here at House No. 3 has been put on hold.

Last weekend, we painted our master bathroom and closet. I forgot to take some "before" pictures, but I took some "during" shots, and as soon as it's all put back together, I'll have some "after" pictures. But like I said, things have slowed waaaaay down with a full-time teaching job. At least until November.

But in the meantime, I've packed my own lunch to school every day, so I thought I'd share a sample of something I made the other day and give you the recipe. I have been making spring rolls all summer long. I love how crunchy and fresh they are. And the dipping sauce is divine. And every year, I love the peaches that come up during late summer/early fall. I learned this week that 50% of my family hates peaches! I was shocked. Who doesn't love that fuzzy sweetness? And speaking of sweetness, I just had to take a yummy piece of caramel apple cake, left over from our Sunday dinner.

Spring rolls are really simple to make. If you can wrap a burrito, you can wrap a spring roll! All you need are some spring roll wraps (found in the Asian section of the grocery store) and whatever veggies you have on hand. I had a package of spring mix, some romaine lettuce, cucumbers, and shredded carrots. I've also used purple cabbage and avocados. The spring roll wraps I use are hard like pasta. After soaking one in a bowl of water for a minute, it softens up. I lay all my veggies at the bottom of it and roll it up. It will stick to itself -- a self-sealing container! Then I cut them in half because A) they look prettier that way and B) they won't fit in my bento box unless they're cut in half. While I'm assembling one, I soak another wrap in the water. My kids love taking these for lunch as well!

As for the dipping sauce, well, get ready for some sweet and savory goodness!

Thai Nut Sauce:

1 cup almonds
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 cup soy sauce or tamari
1/2 cup agave nectar
1-2 cloves of garlic (or more if you really like garlic)

Throw it all into a blender and whiz it up until it's nice and smooth. It makes a lot, which is a good thing!

Enjoy!

Back to School

If you're like me, you're probably asking me yourself, "Where did the summer go?" I took a little time off from house projects and blogging to do some other things. Like turning 40. And going to the movies. And submitting my novel to literary agents. And going on T.V. And going in search of the best shaved ice in Utah!

My kids went back to school yesterday, so I thought I'd share a little post on how we do lunch. My kids don't especially care for school lunch, and I would much rather send them off with something healthier (and cheaper) besides.

Have you noticed all the Bento-style lunches on Pinterest? I like them for two reasons:
1. They save us on all those plastic baggies!
2. Bento boxes allow us to get creative with what to eat for lunch - beyond a peanut butter and jelly sandwich.

I found a couple of divided-compartment containers at Walmart last year, and while it has taken some time, my kids have gotten used to using them and are even having some fun coming up with things to eat for lunch.

Here's what my 9th grader took today:

She took some diced mango, pretzel sticks, and a chicken-bacon salad with grape tomatoes. When I was cooking dinner the other night, I grilled some extra chicken on my trusty little George Foreman grill, chopped it up, and stashed it in the fridge for lunch. This is actually the second day in a row she's asked for that salad!


And here's what my 5th grader took to school:

He took some diced mango, a mini multi-grain bagel with strawberry cream cheese spread, and hummus with baked pita chips. I've never seen a kid who loves hummus more than he does! Just FYI, Costco sells a box of 16 2-oz single serve packs for the same price as the 32-oz tub that never gets finished before getting all icky. Score!

I think the possibilities for bento-style lunches are pretty much unlimited. If you've got bento lunch ideas of your own, I'd love to hear them!