You have to understand St. Michael’s to fully appreciate the scene. St. Michael’s is a small community located on the banks of the Chesapeake Bay about 20 minutes from Easton, MD. It’s a seasonal community that is pretty hokey during the colder months but during the warmer ones boating and crabs are the main attractions…unless you know about the house at the end of the block on W. Chew Ave. During the warmer months you can usually find the inhabitants of said house out in the garden, sitting on the porch, or dining on the back patio watching the still waters of the inlet just yards away. A new bike path was recently finished across the street and the foot traffic has increased enormously. To most that would probably be a bad thing but not to the inhabitants of the last house on W. Chew Ave. More than a few complete strangers have been invited to pull up a chair and share in some wine or other such beverage with said inhabitants. Now, imagine doing that in DC or New York or even Minneapolis (well…more likely in Minneapolis, but still). More than a few friendships have been born of such invitations. It is to this house that my friends and I arrived on that Sunday afternoon.  The kids settled in exploring all the wonders of the glorious garden my mom has nurtured. They discovered the various toys she had accumulated for her grandchildren over the years and they were off.  There were hula hoops, balls, bubbles, you name it Nonna (a.k.a. my mom) had it!  Meanwhile the grown folk began to unwind and enjoy the peace and tranquility of the surroundings (despite the pitter patter of little feet and the  screaming and laughing of those little munchkins, too).  We  took a walk down to the park along the bike path.  When we returned it was time to get our grub ON!!!

Now, this wasn’t any ole’ ordinary grub…this was a Rib’s n’ Crab FEAST!!  Oh yes….Don’t be jealous that’s just how we do!  Peter gave the novices a crash course on the fine art of eating Chesapeake Bay crabs and we were off!  Accompanying the main dishes were fresh corn on the cob, salad and melted butter for dipping that luscious crab meat. It was all a bit unbelievable, but then again we were at the last house on W. Chew Ave.

BEFORE

AFTER

RECOVERY

As a mom, many times I find myself reflecting on the grandiose nature of my responsibility – Wow, the fate of this little person completely rest on: the values that I teach him, my commitment to reading to him, the food that I feed him and the knowledge that I share with him.  Seriously, think about the pressure.  For example, in our household, my husband and I made a commitment to build our boys’ vocabulary – essentially giving them the gift of self-expression.  As a result, most days we are constantly bombarded with questions such as  “what does ‘independent’ mean?”  Most days, I live up to our commitment, but I will be honest and say that some days I just don’t want to put in the effort to find the answer.  On days when I have a “Homer” (and not the author Homer of the Iliad and Odyssey, but more Homer Simpson) moment,  a question like “what does ‘independent’ mean?” may get the answer “it means whatever you want it to mean!”  Moms are constantly under pressure to always do and say what is right.  The same pressure applies when it comes to nutrition.  With the innovation of the internet, we have real-time access to information about parenting and nutrition and real life examples of the Ms. Honeys of our time.   As a result, decisions, including the less stellar ones like feeding your child white rice, are often very well informed.

When we learned of our oldest son’s food allergies, we introduced rice into his diet.  It was the first real food that he ate sans vegetables and protein and he loved it.  In fact, three and a half years later, my little person loves to indulge in a bowl of plain white rice.  That’s right, we didn’t introduce brown rice even though I am aware of brown rice and its benefits (when compared to white rice).  We opted for taste.  White rice has served as a building block in our son’s diet.  Whenever we want him to try a new vegetable or protein filled food, we add it to rice or rice-based products like rice noodles or rice flour.  One of our early and simpler recipes was “Spinach rice”, and later, “Spinach rice noodles.”

Spinach Rice recipe:

-3 handfuls of  organic spinach

- 1 and 1/2 cups of rice

- 2 teaspoons of olive oil

- sea salt

To make “Spinach rice”, we  saute spinach in a pan with a little salt and olive oil.   We add three cups of water to a pan and let it come to a boil.  We then add the rice to the boiling water.  After most of the water in the pan evaporates, we add three teaspoons of olive oil along the boarder of the rice and tightly seal the lid on the pan.  Decrease the temperature to low heat and let the rice simmer for a 1/2 hour or so.  We then put the sauteed spinach in a food processor for 2 to 5 pulses.  After the rice is cooked, we mix the spinach in with the rice and let it simmer for an additional 5 minutes.  The result: Spinach rice.

When using rice as a building block, we didn’t worry about our son’s taste buds becoming dependent on rice.  His buds didn’t.  Our son now loves to eat leafy greens like spinach and collard greens sauteed with garlic and red onions.

So now what?  Should I try to correct my decision and introduce brown rice into my boys’, especially my oldest son’s, diet?  Of course.  I know the benefits of brown rice.  My goal is to introduce brown rice and my wish is that brown rice will eventually replace two to three servings of white rice per week.  As a mom, I became comfortable with the fact that accomplishing the greater goal of raising a healthy child who enjoys nutritious and healthy foods may require small compromises along the way.  White rice was a compromise, but one that proved to be an incredible and fundamental building block to healthier eating.

My affirmation statement for today -  I’m ok with not being perfect!

My little girl is 4 years old and she is already so aware about how she appears that I have to be ultra conscious about everything I say and do. In the morning we rush out, as soon as she eats breakfast. The only meals I know she has eaten are breakfast and dinner. I pack her a healthy snack of fruit/juice/ cheese/ vegetables/yogurt or whole what crackers.  But I always wonder if she really does snack healthy or has eaten lunch. Neither am I there throughout the day as she is exposed to so many views and people; often whom have a strong influence on her. I do sound neurotic!!!!

When my daughter came back from school couple of weeks ago, excited about Jump Rope for Heart program at school (check the website  http://www.jumpropeforheart.ca/). All my worries (well, that is bit of an exaggeration, a mother’s worry never ceases, I am sure a lot of us can vouch for that as our mom’s continue to be on our cases) came to a grinding halt. I was assured and felt fortunate that her school, (read about school lunches in the USA http://www.zomppa.com/2010/05/19/5709/) her teacher was my partner in developing my daughter to be exposed to values that we hoped she would imbibe-the importance of physical activity, healthy eating and social responsibility.

We sent out our requests for donations, and on the day of the program, my little girl and her friend came back home telling me about

-          why smoking was bad for your lungs

-          why eating healthy  was important – she was particular about broccoli, carrots, tofu – and how it would make her strong and beautiful!!!!

-          why exercise and jumping was good (now I cannot stop her from skipping inside and outside the house- be careful what you ask for!)

The program was initiated by the Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada. Such programs are so greatly needed in schools. Some startling facts that kids of this generation may not live long as their parents, due to childhood obesity should make us all concerned, right!!!! (Check the post on obesity in the USA http://zomppa.org/2010/04/22/research-to-date/)  Can you believe almost 1.6 million kids are obese in Canada!!!

As parents, we often are hard on ourselves but I have learned that we are not alone in bringing up our kids we have partners. Our part is to make sure that

-          we are involved

-          we teach our kids and learn to make healthy food choices

-          let our partners-teachers, school –  know that as parents we support them, by volunteering when we get the opportunity, continue the  learning at home and if there are no such programs see how we can make an effort to change it!

I may be biased but it would be so wonderful, when zomppa bus arrives! Zomppa.org is our non-profit arm; our mandate is to “inspire a global perspective and local consciousness in children through an engaging, interactive, and accessible mobile food museum to promote a healthier, more peaceful, more delicious world.”

Till then let’s jump with our kids for our hearts!!!

While Ohno gets his rush from speeding like a maniac on steel blades, some of us find pleasure in things a bit less…fast. Food carries much tradition and symbolism. Oysters are a known aphrodisiac and were sure sell-outs for Valentine’s Day (especially those snowed in!). They are also commonly eaten for Chinese New Year because they represent good business and receptivity to good fortune – and we can all certainly use a bit of that! They are usually eaten dried, but since I wanted to know where my oysters came from, I bought them fresh and spent a good half hour shucking them.

As you know, this is the Year of the Tiger – or the Lunar New Year 4708 (and I thought 2010 seemed like a lot). People born in the year of the Tiger, tradition says, are charismatic, powerful, and protective. If you want to learn more, check this out.

I’m not a soothsayer; I’m an eater. Since I was not headed to my folks’ place this year (too many snowstorms to battle the airports), I decided to try my own Chinese New Year feast. This was my first going all out, and the Usual Suspects were brave enough to be my guinea pigs once again. Cake Mountain Man, L, P & C all came over, as New Year Eve’s is a time for Reunion Dinners – family and friends, and they were served up a very traditional meal. They brought oranges, symbolizing wealth, good fortune.

Eight dishes were served. Eight represents the auspicious number eight, which sounds like the word fortune. Let’s eat. (all recipes below)

You’ll note that many of the same ingredients are used throughout, which made life a lot easier. First up were Egg Rolls. They are eaten because they look like little gold bars, so they represent money and wealth.

I made these with mushrooms, bamboo shoots (wealth, new start), carrots (good luck), bean sprouts (to your heart’s content), and a little sea moss.

Second were Lion’s Head Meatballs. These were made with ground pork and shrimp (the word sounds like “ha, ha”, symbolizing laughter, happiness). Of course,  I added just a bit of sea moss and some mushrooms. These mushrooms are the dried Chinese black mushrooms, and they represent fortune and are often eaten during this time of year when many go vegetarian (ah-hem, not me).

These meatballs are served because the lion represents authority and strength and the large round meatballs represent family unity.

Third were the Lettuce Wrapped Oysters with Black Mushrooms and Sea Moss. This is a dish my dad would make and I never really liked it as a kid. My version was slightly tastier (aka sweeter – sorry, dad!) but still not my favorite, which meant I was able to more or less replicate his original. Oysters and mushrooms we’ve talked about and lettuce sounds like bring about good wealth. Sea moss is also ‘fat choy,’ which looks like a bunch of hair, but sounds like congratulations, be prosperous, fortune. It sounds like the Fat Choy in the greeting Gung Hay Fat Choy which is commonly said during new year, meaning May You Come Into Good Fortune.

I thought it’d be pretty and yummy to wrap them in lettuce, and it turns out that food rolled into lettuce means having a child soon (er….)

Fourth were Longevity Noodles. These I had to buy in an Asia market because they are made especially long and you’re not supposed to cut them.

Noodles represent long life of course.

Still with me? Fifth was the classic White Cut Chicken. Finding a whole chicken with its head and feet was no easy task down here. Whole chickens represent completeness, togetherness of the family. This is served with three dipping sauces.

Sixth was Garlic Lettuce, a simple dish. I served this with rice, of course, using a wild rice grown in the Objibwe tradition. Rice symbolizes fertility, luck.

Seventh was the Whole Steamed Fish. This gorgeous red snapper was so big I couldn’t get the tail to fit into the wok! Whole fish sounds like surplus and represent increase in prosperity.

Dish number eight (are you full yet?) was of course, dessert! I didn’t want to mess up the steaming of the traditional nian gao, a sticky rice pudding and thought what’s better than a traditional Chinese Swiss (the irony) roll cake.

Needless to say, we were feeling pretty fortunate having bellies full and cheering Ohno on to the podium. Thanks to Cake Mountain Man who made cooking and cleaning far easier and for the Usual Suspects venturing to share a very traditional meal. What a way to ring in the Year of the Tiger (and Valentine’s Day!)

Gung Hay Fat Choy!

Egg Rolls
3/4 cup bean sprout
1 bunch green onions, chopped
2 carrots, cut into thin slices
1 cup bamboo shoots
1 1/2 cup mushroom, cut into thin slices
1 tsp light brown sugar
1 TB soy
1 TB rice wine
1 tsp salt
1 TB corn starch
Vegetable oil

1. Get wok hot and heat oil
2. Stir fry bean sprouts, green onions, carrots, bamboo shoots, and mushrooms for 1 minute
3. Add salt, soy, brown sugar, and rice wine and stir fry for 2 minutes
4. Remove vegetable mixture
5. Mix cornstarch and water to make a paste
6. Place a couple tablespoons of the vegetable mixture in the middle of an eggroll wrapper, wrap, seal with cornstarch paste
7. Heat a couple inches of oil in wok until hot
8. Deep fry each eggroll for 2-3 minutes, turn when one side is brown, drain

Lion’s Head Meatball
1 lb ground pork
1/2 lb shrimp, cooked, chopped into small pieces
1/2 bunch green onions, finely chopped
2 TB ginger, finely chopped
1/4 cup mushroom, chopped
1/2 head lettuce, chopped into large pieces
1 TB soy
1 TB rice wine
1 tsp light brown sugar
1 TB cornstarch
3 tsp veg oil
1 tsp salt
1 1/2 cup chicken broth

1. Combine pork, scallion, ginger, mushroom, soy, sugar, wine, cornstarch
2. Shape into 8 large balls
3. In casserole or Dutch oven, heat oil and add lettuce. Season with salt and saute until wilted
4. Add meatballs to brown
5. Add chicken broth and bring to boil
6. Reduce heat and simmer 30-35 minutes

Lettuce Wrapped Oysters with Black Mushrooms and Sea Moss
8 oysters
8 black mushrooms
1/2 lb. sea moss (fat choy)
1 small package rice vermicelli (little ones)
3 TB oyster sauce
1/3 cup chicken stock
1/4 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 TB vegetable oil
1 TB sesame oil
1 TB cornstarch
1 TB water

1. Soak fat choy, vermicelli, and mushrooms
2. Take large lettuce leaves (whole) in hot water. Blanch and remove
3. Heat wok with oil and sautee oysters
4. Add mushrooms, fat choy, vermicelli, chicken stock, and oyster sauce
5. Season with sesame oil, salt, and sugar
6. Mis cornstarch with water and add slowly to thicken
7. Place two mushrooms and two oysters with rest in each lettuce leaf
8. Wrap

Longevity Noodles
1/2 lbs. longevity noodles
8 cups water
1 tsp salt
3 cups chicken broth
1/2 bunch green onions, chopped
1/2 cup ham, chopped
1/2 cup bamboo shoots
1/4 cup mushrooms, chopped
1TB soy sauce
2 TB oyster sauce
1 tsp sesame oil
2 tsp cornstarch
4 tsp water

1. Heat salted water and parboil noodles. Separate with chopsticks – do not cut
2. Drain
3. Bring chicken broth to oil, add soy sauce, oyster sauce and sesame oil
4. Mix cornstarch with water and add slowly to thicken
5. Add bamboo shoots, onions and ham and remove

White Cut Chicken
1 whole chicken, head and feet attached
3 green onions, chopped
3 cloves garlic, smashed
3 pieces ginger, smashed
1 cup rice wine
1 TB kosher salt

1. Wash and dry chicken
2. In large pot, cover chicken with water.
3. Add green onions, ginger, garlic, rice wine, and salt
4. Bring to boil
5. Simmer for 30-35 minutes
6. Turn off heat, cover, and let chicken sit in stock for 4-5 hours
7. Cut up chicken and serve with three dips
8. Dip one: oyster sauce; dip two: mix soy sauce with chili sauce; dip three: heat hot oil and pour over a mix of salt, minced garlic, and chopped green onion

Garlic Lettuce
1 head lettuce, chopped
6 cloves garlic, smashed
1 1/2 tsp soy sauce
1 1/2 sesame oil
1 tsp rice wine
1 tsp sugar
Vegetable oil
Salt
Pepper

1. Combine soy sauce, sesame oil, rice wine, sugar, and pepper and heat over medium high
2. Add vegetable oil and garlic. Saute for 10 seconds
3. Add lettuce and cook until just wilted, add salt to season

Steamed Fish
1 ½ lb fish (granted, mine was twice this size!)
5 slices ginger, chopped
3 green onions, chopped
3 TB soy sauce
2 tsp rice wine
Vegetable oil

1. Put ginger inside fish
2. Sprinkle salt in and out of fish
3. Put in wok and steam on medium high heat for 20 minutes
4. Mix soy sauce, rice wine, and green onions, and pour over steamed fish
5. Heat oil in small pot and pour over fish right before serving

At 3am in the morning, I heard a incredibly loud ‘bang,’ followed by a thunderous symphony of running feet and then a ‘Mommy.  Mommy.  Mommy.  Mommy.  There are dragons.  In my room.  Can I get in the bed?  Help me.  Help me in the bed, peas?”

I wouldn’t mind so much that my 3 year old sleeps with us if she actually slept.  Instead, she normally flip flops in the bed like a fish out of water and plants her giant man-feet in my back, face and sometimes, the lady bits.  Nicccceeee.

To say the least, I struggled that day.  I woke up late, the kids woke up in a foul mood and refused to eat a proper breakfast, I couldn’t find any clean panties to wear, I burnt my tongue drinking reheated coffee (made the morning before) and I didn’t get to eat any breakfast.

As we were terribly late, I had to make up some time on the road.  I’m sure that all the people I passed on the parkway at a 100 mph saw the two little kids peering out of the windows from the backseats with the fear of God in their eyes.  Honestly, I have been slightly anxious since Thursday – waiting for social services to come knocking on my door as I no doubt managed to destabilize my children’s psychological health and endangered their physical well-being.  But at least we made it to school on time, right?   Right?

As I hadn’t gotten any breakfast that morning and was highly disappointed by the burnt/bitter after taste left by my overheated coffee, I stopped in the local Starbucks to grab some nourishment.  While I would have preferred the sausage and cheese breakfast sandwich in a delicious, crumbly biscuit, I opted for their Fruit and Yoghurt Parfait.  At a whopping $3.50.

Now, that might not sound like a lot of money to most of you who read this blog.  But for someone who doesn’t eat outdoors (meaning outside of the house) very often, this price seemed like something of a rip off.  I understand that I pay, primarily, for the convenience, but I couldn’t’ help thinking, “Jeez, I can make about 2-3 parfaits at home for this price.”   Not to mention, a Parfait customized to my liking with flavors and textures made just for me.

So.  That is exactly what I did.  I made this Raspberry and Granola Parfait using incredibly creamy (and bonus!  Low fat!) Greek yoghurt, cherry preserves, fresh raspberries and granola.  As I have an obsession with saving jam jars, I was able to create the parfaits in the jars/lids and have been using them to transport my parfaits via diaper bag/purse to eat while on the go!  I just make the parfait the night before and throw the jar in my bag.  I figure, as long as I eat the thing within 1-2 hours of the fridge, I’ll be all right.

Raspberry and Granola Parfait

1 5.3-ounce carton of Greek yogurt (about 1 cup)
1-2 tablespoons of cherry preserves (really depends on how sweet you want it)
2 small handfuls of granola (any kind will do)
½ a cup of raspberries (or any fruit you like)

Directions:

Starting with the yogurt, layer your parfait with the yoghurt, then preserves, then granola and then raspberries.  The number of times that you can layer your parfait depends on the size of your container.  I was able to layer it twice in my jam jar.  Enjoy!

On our small little terrace as a family we have been planning to plant vegetables and herbs, but never got to doing it. Patty’s blog Pimped out Plant gave me the final push. To be honest, buying a small bunch of herbs for $1.49 just doesn’t sound right!

WEEK ONE
THE PLAN: Plant tomatoes, beans and herbs –parsley, basil and thyme.
(Problem: My husband, calmly asks me, so what type of soil do you require? How big a flowerpot would be needed? Etc…uhh…recap did I just say my amala instilled in me the joy of gardening? I meant playing with soil and water; well I didn’t claim I was a seasoned gardener.)

It was a beautiful spring weekend, we packed the kids in the car and off we went to Home Depot (on the way my husband lectures me on how we need to support small business and try and find a place in the future where we can purchase all the gardening tools.) Home Depot does provide a lot of environmentally friendly options. We buy organic soil, a nice cedar box and seeds.

RESULTS: TOTAL MESS AND HAPPINESS

I am not sure whether my daughter enjoyed playing with dirt more or me…but we got messy and loved it!!! She loved painting the pots, putting soil and planting the seeds. Whether something grows or if she learned a thing or two I don’t know but we got dirty and we laughed our hearts out.

WEEK TWO
Every evening my daughter waters the pots and does her little song-dance routine – she takes her responsibility seriously. Then on Sunday, she comes running to me after her daily inspection, “Mama, something grows, something grows. Mama, where are the tomatoes?” Believe me, I was “super excited” (her favourite words) too. We will wait for the tomatoes and herbs but I definitely could see some little seedlings or is it just weeds?

I went to the store bought some beef (grain fed, no animal by product, no-antibiotic-just reading the package made me shudder as I glanced at its cousins-forced into cannibalism) which was super expensive! Coming out of the grocery store feeling a lot lighter in my purse I was wondering like we all do – Why does eating/feeding your family healthy have to be expensive? How can I balance healthy eating with cost?

My son’s first meat dish was minced beef, peas and carrot puree; unlike the time when I introduced him to cauliflower he did not clench his mouth closed but LOVED it! Jury is out -neither my 31/2 year old daughter, who loves her kebabs and chicken chowmein, is going to become a vegetarian anytime soon nor is my little boy! As long as they eat veggies, as a vegetarian mother I accept their present verdict on their diet!

GT-First Meat Dish

Minced meat, carrot and peas (8 months +)
Ingredients
½ cup of organic minced meat
1 teaspoon organic frozen/fresh peas
2 organic baby carrots/chopped
½ teaspoon Olive oil
1 cup of water

Directions
Heat the pan and add the olive oil. Sauté the meat until well cooked about 5 minutes. Add chopped carrots and peas and cook for 5 minutes. Add the water and cook till the carrots and peas are soft. Put the mixture into a food mill or food blender until pureed. Serve it nice and warm for your little love!

Never fear.  I managed to buy some miniature plant pots, some paints/paint brushes, a tiny watering can (for tiny hands), some soil and seeds (for growing flowers).  On a random Saturday a few weeks back, we sat on our kitchen floor, laid out some paper bags and pimped out our plant pots.  We dumped in some dirt, added the seeds and watered (actually, almost drowned) our newly planted seeds.

So much for our gardening project.  The entire project took less than 5 minutes!  I broke out a pair of gardening gloves for no reason!  The oldest child lost complete interest after 5 minutes and the baby tried her best to eat some acrylic paint.  Disaster.  The worst part is that, after two weeks of watering and watching, NOTHING sprouted!  The only thing we had after two weeks was two pots of WET DIRT!  Sad, Sad, Sad.

But you know what?  Within those five minutes, we created instant memories.  I know, it sounds cheesy, but when these kiddies are in their 30’s and looking back through the photo albums, they’ll fall over laughing at our sad attempt to introduce them to our fragile, but incredibly vital, ecosystem.  There will definitely be other opportunities to teach my kiddies a few things…. perhaps next time, I’ll see about renting a plot of land at our local neighborhood garden and recruiting the help of a green thumb!   Here’s to creating memories!

Tiny Hands Shown to Scale

In an attempt to encourage her to eat a proper meal (nutritious and possibly warm?), I developed my own version of egg rolls that can fit in her hands. These are based on a recipe my mom created when I was a child, minus the oil and frying process.

Admittedly, my taste buds will always be partial towards fried eggrolls. Something about the flavor of all that oil seeped into the wrapper and the crunchy/crispy outside…. But for the sake of my arteries (and my children’s health), I’ve opted to bake these eggrolls. Minus the difference in texture (certainly not as crispy), they are scrumptious in their own right. The proof of their tastiness and the high likelihood that your little one will like them can be seen in the photos below. Pai demonstrates the sequence of emotional events (from left to right) as she downs an eggroll.

Unsure

Eating

Success!

RECIPE:

Egg roll wraps (the large ones and the small, wonton wraps) can be found in practically any grocery store these days, someplace near the refrigeration section of the store. Egg rolls made in the wonton wrappers may fit more snuggly in a tiny, 2-year old palm; however, folding the filling into these tiny wrappers requires incredible skill and petite fingers. I have neither skill nor tiny fingers. Therefore, I use the larger eggroll wrappers.

Ingredients:

1 small head of organic cabbage

3 organic garlic cloves

3 medium-sized organic carrots

3 organic scallions (white and green parts)

1 inch of grated organic ginger

2 teaspoons of organic canola oil

¼ lb of organic rice noodles (or angel hair pasta)

½ lb of organic ground turkey (dark or white)

2 table spoons of Hoisin Sauce

2 tablespoons organic Soy Sauce

2 teaspoons mirin (sweet rice wine)

Instructions:

Pour some boiling hot water in a bowl, over the rice noodles for 5 minutes.

In a large food processor, pulse the cabbage, garlic cloves, carrots and scallions until well combined and minced (you can shred, but my little one creates less of a mess when I mince the veggies).

Grate the ginger using a microplane or box grater.

Heat a wok/deep skillet with the 2 teaspoons of oil. Add the ground turkey and break up meat, stirring on medium to high heat until completely cooked. Add the processed vegetables. Stir for 1 minute. Add the Hoisin sauce, soy sauce and mirin. Stir for another 3 to 4 minutes. Turn off heat.

Cut the noodles into ½ inch pieces. Add the noodles to the stir-fry. Stir until well incorporated.

Fold/fill the eggroll wrappers by following the instructions that come with the packet of wrappers. Instead of filling the wrappers to the brim, consider only adding only 2 to 3 teaspoons of the filling for some of the younger eaters. This way, your eggrolls are longer (rather than wider) and can, more easily, fit in their hands.

Heat the oven to 400 degrees and bake for 16-18 minutes on the middle rack. To attain a browner complexion and ‘crispy’ texture, feel free to brush a little canola or sesame oil on the rolls.

You can serve your eggrolls with a peanut sauce or a cool Greek yogurt/lemon sauce or soy sauce/sesame oil sauce.