EXTRACT FROM Eat Your Words by Louise Gelderblom, Courtesy of Quivertree
Not all readers are good cooks, which may make hosting book club a stressful affair. This is what inspired artist Louise Gelderblom to write a cookbook for bibliophiles.
“I think of entertaining as a little show that I put on, and I really enjoy the preparations as much as the actual event, says Louise, an artist who is best known for her ceramics. “It’s a sort of a zen activity, and I really believe food tastes better when the cook has been completely present mentally in the preparation thereof.” We selected two recipes from her book for dishes to serve at book club on a warm summer’s evening.
Vegetable Summer Rolls with a Peanut Dipping Sauce
You can add or substitute any vegetables you like in these Vietnamese spring rolls.
Makes 20 Rolls
Warm water, to soak rice-paper wrappers in
10 rice-paper wrappers
1 large carrot, peeled and julienned
1 large cucumber, seeds scraped out with
a teaspoon and julienned
½ large red sweet pepper, julienned
1 avocado, thinly sliced
A big handful of fresh coriander, basil and mint, chopped
5 large soft lettuce leaves, thinly sliced
Sesame seeds, to garnish
Dipping Sauce
½ cup peanut butter
½ cup plain yoghurt
A handful of fresh coriander, finely chopped
1 tbsp hoisin sauce
1 tbsp soya sauce
3 cloves garlic, finely chopped
2 red chillies, seeded and finely chopped
1 tbsp lemon juice, or more to taste
2 spring onions, finely chopped
2–4 tbsp warm water, or more as needed
1. Pour warm water into a shallow flat bottomed dish slightly bigger than the wrappers. Working with one wrapper at a time, submerge it in the water for 20 seconds, remove and lay on a smooth surface like a plastic chopping board. You want the wrapper to be soft yet slightly firm and pliable. Pat it with kitchen paper to remove excess water.
2. Place a few strips of each of the vegetables, a slice of avocado, a generous sprinkling of herbs and some lettuce ribbons on the bottom third of the wrapper. Do not overstuff the roll; it will be difficult to roll up and awkward to eat. To roll the wrapper, bring the lower edge up and over the filling, fold in the two sides, and roll the whole thing up using your fingers to tuck in the filling as you go. Roll it tightly.
3. Cut the roll in half and place it on a serving platter. When you’ve done them all, sprinkle with sesame seeds.
4. To make the dipping sauce, mix all the ingredients except the water. Add warm water to thin the mixture to the desired consistency. Serve in a bowl.
TIP: If you are making the rolls in advance, place them in a large flat container on a sheet of baking paper without them touching. Cover the container very well with plastic wrap and store in the fridge. Bring back to room temperature before serving.
