Sweet Potato & Mango Summer Rolls

Summer rolls (also called gỏi cuốn or salad rolls) originated in Vietnam as convenient street food and have spread to restaurants across the globe in the last half-century. They contain ingredients that are familiar to fans of Asian cuisine, and are flexible to additions or substitutions in order to be easily adapted to fit dietary restrictions or to use up ripening vegetables. These rolls are easy to make, last well in the refrigerator, and are transportable for picnics or lunches on the go. I have served these rolls as an appetizer to a large Christmas meal, and have added chicken to serve them as a dinner entrée.

Preparation Time: 30 minutes

Yield: 16 summer rolls

Ingredients:

• 2 large sweet potatoes
• 2 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 lemon
• 4 ounces vermicelli rice noodles
• 1 tablespoon rice vinegar
• 16 (8-½ inch) round rice paper wrappers
• 16 leaves red leaf lettuce
• 1 cup mint leaves, whole
• ½ cup cilantro, thinly chopped
• 1 cup peanut sauce, divided, from a bottle or homemade
• 2 mangos, cut into long slices
• 1 Napa cabbage, shredded
• 1 cup basil, thinly chopped

Instructions:

1. Wash and peel the sweet potatoes and cut them into about ½ inch cubes. Place the cubes in a glass or non-stick baking dish coated in olive oil and turn until potatoes are fully coated. Sprinkle with salt to taste. Bake in an oven preheated to 350 degrees F for 60 minutes, or until soft. Spritz the potatoes with lemon juice and set aside for later use.

2. Boil a medium size pot of water and cook the rice noodles until soft, or as directed by the box instructions. Drain the noodles, then return them to the pot and add 1 tablespoon of rice vinegar to prevent sticking. Set aside.

3. Fill a large pan with hot water and submerse a rice paper wrapper in the water for 30 seconds to a minute, or until the wrapper is soft and its texture is smooth.

4. Lay the wrapper on a plate and place one leaf of lettuce on the wrapper. The lettuce should cover one half of the wrapper leaving a ½ to 1-inch border from the edge of the wrapper.

5. Place three or four cubes of the baked sweet potato, two mint leaves, a sprinkling of cilantro, and a teaspoon of peanut sauce on the leaf of lettuce. Wrap the rice paper wrapper around the lettuce and the additional ingredients until only the half of the wrapper uncovered by lettuce remains.

6. Add a tablespoon of cabbage, a sprinkling of basil, about ten vermicelli rice noodles, and one slice of mango to the uncovered part of the rice paper wrapper. Fold the sides of the wrapper in, and continue rolling over the new ingredients until all ingredients are sealed within the wrapper.

7. Cut the summer roll in half along a gentle diagonal, and enjoy with extra peanut dipping sauce if desired. Rolls will keep for two to three days in the refrigerator in a sealed container.