Autumn Rolls

I was sorting through my pantry recently and found a load of rice paper rolls. Suddenly, all I wanted to do was roll things. But what? Last time I had used these papers was for the Mango Summer Rolls from Vegan With a Vengeance, which were delightful, but I wanted to make something seasonal. Thus the Autumn Roll was born.

I chopped up some parsnips, carrots, butternut squash and pecans, tossed them with some maple syrup and cinnamon and threw them in the oven for about an hour, mixing them up a few times. Once they cooled to room temperature, I threw a few spoonfuls of the vegetables on a double layer of rice paper and rolled them up.

The verdict: When they were first made, they were pretty boring. They were so bland the flavor of the rice paper (which many people don't think even exists) overpowered the flavor of the vegetables. I was thinking of doing a mapley dipping sauce, but it didn't seem to be worth the bother. I made about six rolls decided we'd eat the rest of the filling straight up. But I brought the rolls to work and they were actually way better straight out of the fridge. Everything was really crunchy and the flavors came through a lot more. Maybe I'll make a few more of them after all, but if anyone has any roll filling suggestions, I'd love it if you'd share.