Sunday's Plate

This week we had egg rolls in school and the children went crazy over them. I think there was not an egg roll left. I've made egg rolls for years along with a lot of Asian dishes. While most people find comfort in mashed potatoes and pot roast gravy, I find comfort in curried rice, egg rolls, and sweet pork dishes.

When Terry and I came here to Indiana, there were no Chinese restaurants to speak of, and I decided to try my hand at making my own Chinese and Indian food, so my children would have the experience of eating that great wide variety of foods that is so healthy.

So this week, I decided to make egg rolls for 50! What a job! I bought shredded broccoli and carrots, chicken breasts, and sheered cabbage. I cut celery, green pepper and sauteed all these veggies in olive oil and soy sauce, ginger, pepper and garlic, and added the already baked chicken breasts that I had shredded.

I packed the egg roll skins that I got at Schnuck's in the green grocer ( fresh fruit and veggie section). It's not hard to do. You set your skins so they look like a diamond - point down. Place about two tablespoons of filling toward the bottom of the diamond, flip the bottom point over the filling. Like an envelope, close the two side points so that the filling is snug but not tight, wet the last point with water using your fingers, and roll. Set aside on paper towels.

At home, I use a lot of left overs - cooked and uncooked. All things are mildly heated with the soy and spices, and I use lettuce or whatever veggie I have a lot of. I've even used collard greens and beet leaves. Cube or shred anything you have left over. Egg rolls are supposed to be filled with leftovers.

Heat an inch of canola oil in a deep pan until it feels very warm when holding your hand over the pan. Don't touch!!! Drop your egg rolls into the hot oil. They will sizzle if the oil is hot enough, and they should. When they are brown, remove from pan and drain on a cake cooling rack. Then move to paper towel.

I serve my home egg rolls on a square plate. I serve them with horseradish, mustard and peach jam. Delicious! At school, we made a cherry sauce from ground maraschino cherries, soy sauce, vinegar, and cornstarch.