September 13 of 2025....
The Women
Historical fiction was on our reading menu and once again, Kristin Hannah did not disappoint. Set in Vietnam, The Women introduced us to some strong, powerful women and as predicted, our conversation was powerful. Scroll down to check out our discussion document.
What did we make?
Vietnamese Spring Rolls; a fresh snack that you can customize!
If you have ever ordered fresh spring rolls at a Vietnamese restaurant, you know how great these can be - but rarely do folks think about making them at home, even though making a quick salad at home is pretty common. If you have the "fixins" for a salad in your fridge, you don't need much else outside of rice paper and perhaps a protein of your choice. For our Book & Bake crew, we used store bought shrimp cocktail sliced horizontally.
Ingredient List:
Fresh leaf lettuce
shredded carrot
red bell pepper, cut into thin stips
Shrimp (boiled and chilled; we bought it!)
Rice paper
Water (in a vessel large enough to dip the rice paper*; I used a small skillet)
I prepped plenty of everything ahead of time (picture me in my kitchen, audio book in my ear, happily slicing and dicing!) so we could have leftovers. Talk about convenience...doing the extra prep once gave us fresh spring rolls for a few days afterward.
*Dip one piece of rice paper for 4-6 seconds and then place it on a plate or cutting board. It will soften quickly so don't dilly dally my friends...get to placing your sliced shrimp and other ingredients so you're ready to roll! Once your desired veggies are loaded, fold in the sides and carefully wrap it all up relatively tightly.
Peanut Sauce - Ok, I forgot to make it ahead of time so my sis-in-love, Keri worked some magic and whipped up a super tasty peanut sauce with the ingredients I had on hand: creamy peanut butter, fish sauce, soy sauce, rice wine vinegar, sugar, and a bit of water.
Keri's method? Dump and stir...taste....adjust...taste...adjust...taste...you get the idea!
Kitchen Time
Rice Paper
Building Community in the Kitchen
Serious Concentration
I purchased the rice paper from Amazon but I assure you it is available in grocery stores. Check the international aisle! I live in an urban area so it is pretty easy to find. I used Amazon for convenience.
Serious Concentration
Building Community in the Kitchen
Serious Concentration
I love seeing friends in my kitchen creating things together. Everyone had opportunity to make their own spring roll. This makes my heart happy!
Building Community in the Kitchen
Building Community in the Kitchen
Building Community in the Kitchen
Have you ever handled rice paper after dipping it in the water? Sticky business! There was quite a bit of "hey try this!" happening along with several chuckles at our creations.
Guilt Free Fun
Guilt Free Fun
Building Community in the Kitchen
Revisit the spring roll ingredient list...notice anything? It is full of great stuff that we need! Fresh vegetables and, shrimp that isn't fried. Don't like shrimp? - leave it out - add chicken. Want to go vegetarian? Toss in a few cannellini beans!
Nom Nom
Guilt Free Fun
Ta-Daaah
Yes, we had a table full of food, we didn't just eat healthy spring rolls. Come on! We have to live a little. That is what I love about this group - we all pitch in to share something. No one will ever go hungry at Book & Bake.
Ta-Daaah
Guilt Free Fun
Ta-Daaah
I've made some pretty wonky spring rolls but this one turned out perfectly. I figured out that I have an easier time rolling if I restrain from over-stuffing! Another helpful nugget is to add sauce after rolling instead of adding sauce to the filling.
Making Memories
