Ellington

Spring rolls are a popular appetizer that almost all of us have experienced in some form. Many regional cuisines feature the dish, though most notably Eastern and Southeastern Asian cuisine. The rolls come in many varieties, including with different wrapping materials, fillings, dipping sauces and cooking techniques.

Fillings range from vegetables to seafood, tofu and meats, and fresh herbs are often featured. The dipping sauces include sweet and sour, soy sauce, duck sauce, hot mustard, chili sauce, sweet peanut sauce, Hoisin or fish sauce.

While I enjoy an occasional fried spring roll, for the warm weather, I gravitate toward a non-fried spring roll, which are sometimes called summer rolls. My first introduction to this incredible delicacy was at a Thai restaurant in Hawaii. It was love at first bite.

Since then, I have been searching all over for these non-fried versions of the dish. They are extremely elusive. Because I haven't found many of them in Jackson or New Orleans, I experimented and came up with my own recipe. These spring/summer rolls are delicately wrapped in lightly soaked rice paper, served cool and have a variety of tasty dipping sauces. Another benefit of this recipe is that you can alter it to your taste by adding different vegetables, seafood, meats and herbs and, of course, the dipping sauce of your choice. And—it's gluten free!

Shrimp Spring/Summer Rolls

For the rolls

Twelve 12-inch rice-paper rounds—you can find these in the international section of most grocery stores or at specialty Asian markets.

12 lettuce leaves, rinsed and patted dry. I like romaine, but any type will work.

4 ounces rice vermicelli, (also known as "glass or cellophane noodles") cooked two minutes in boiling water, drained and cooled

1 cup shredded carrot

1 bunch fresh mint leaves

1 bunch fresh cilantro leaves

12 large shrimp, shelled, de-veined and halved lengthwise

For the Dipping Sauce

1/2 cup Hoisin sauce

1/4 cup rice vinegar

1 tablespoon fresh ginger, minced

1 teaspoon hot chili pepper, minced, and seeded if less heat is desired

Directions

Whisk together ingredients for the sauce and chill.

Fill a large pan with very warm water and spread a damp kitchen towel on a flat counter surface. Dip a rice paper sheet into the warm water for several seconds until it's soft and pliable. Place it on the damp towel and spread the sheet with your fingers. Arrange a lettuce leaf at the center of the rice paper, leaving a one inch border all the way around. Top it with about 1 tablespoon of rice noodles, spreading them down the center of the lettuce. Cover the noodles with about 1 tablespoon of the carrot. Arrange one to two sprigs of mint and cilantro over the carrot.

Finally, top the lettuce with two slices of halved, cooked shrimp. Fold in the two short opposite sides of rice paper and tightly roll up the remaining sides to form a tube. Transfer the roll to a prepared dish, seam side down, and cover it with plastic wrap. Continue making more rolls with the remaining ingredients. Chill for up to four hours.

To serve, cut each chilled roll in half diagonally and arrange on a platter, cut side up. Garnish the platter with fresh mint and cilantro. Serve the rolls with dipping sauce.

Makes 24 hors d'oeuvres or a light lunch for four.