"It's still Spring" Rolls

      One of the hardest parts of the low FODMAP diet is cutting out gluten.  In America, most of our staples involve wheat, so as a result I started looking to Asian and Latin American influenced foods, as they tend to have less wheat.
   Here is one of my favorite meals to make.  The prep work is a bit more than most, but that's part of the importance.  According to my dietician, a large amount of the digestive juices that your body requires are created in the 30 minutes prior to eating.  Your body only knows to create these juices when you spend that time anticipating food (planning, dicing, cooking, etc.).  So realizing you're hungry and automatically grabbing a burger may work at some times, but it can cause a shock to your system.

   So here is an outline of one of my favorite meals, feel free to add your own suggestions below!

 Spring Roll Ingredients:

• Rice Paper Wraps
• 3 oz Rice Noodles
• 1 Cucumber
• 2 Carrots
• 1 Avocado (limit if you are sensitive)
• 1 Jicama (probably a small one, but left overs are always good)
• 1 Tbs Cilantro
• 1/2 tsp Sugar
• 1/2 Tbs Rice Vinegar
• 1 Tbs Soy Sauce (or soja sauce for gluten free)
• Drizzle of Sesame Oil

Dipping Sauce Ingredients:

• 1Tbs Rice Vinegar
• 1 tsp Soy Sauce
• 1 tsp Sesame Oil
• 1 tsp finely chopped Peanuts
• 1 tsp chopped Cilantro

 Instructions:

1. Chop Everything, except the carrots: you're going to want things in thin strips so it'll fit nicely in your roll
2. Slice the carrots into thin strips, I use a vegetable peeler, but a tool that will jullienne them may be better.
3. Combine the carrots, soy sauce, vinegar, sugar and cilantro on a bowl and mix.
4. Cook rice noodles as the instructions say. When finished rinse them with cold water (to stop then from cooking) and drizzle with sesame oil.

 

5.  Assemble all your ingredients and get ready to roll!

6.  Fill a wide flat bowl with warm water.

7.  Dip the rice paper into the water. you want it to be flexible, but not so flexible that it loses the pattern on it.  This may take some practice.

8.  Lay the paper on a flat dry plate and choose your ingredients.

9. Lay the ingredients in a flat line leaving room on the edges (pictured below).

10. Fold in the edges and roll up. Then keep going! 

 Dipping Sauce:
Combine all ingredients and stir until the sugar is dissolved.
In the past I've also added lime juice or ginger and they all turned out yummy.

Enjoy!

I will explain more about the low FODMAP diet in the future, but for now, keep exploring, keep enjoying, keep those bellies happy!