Southwestern Egg Rolls

It's Lent! Which means no meat on Fridays for my Catholic husband.  No problem, except none of us like fish! Shrimp is pretty good, but I don't want it every Friday for six weeks, so I'm always on the lookout for new meatless dishes that don't taste like a sacrifice.

I first had southwestern egg rolls at Bennigan's and thought they were fabulous. It's been so long since I've had theirs that I forget exactly how they tasted, but this recipe is close enough for me. Theirs were fried, but I save a few calories by baking these instead. Feel free to fry them if you prefer a more traditional egg roll texture. Heck, you could even add some meat if you wanted. Shredded chicken would be nice, but I honestly don't miss the meat a bit. I planned to make these last Friday, but an ice storm power outage ruined those plans, so I served them on a Tuesday instead, and nobody even noticed they didn't have meat!

Southwestern Egg Rolls
Prep time: 20 min  Bake time: 20 min

Makes 20 rolls

1 cup frozen corn, thawed
1 (15 oz) can black beans, rinsed and drained
1 cup frozen chopped spinach, thawed and squeezed dry
2 cups shredded Mexican cheese
1 (4 oz) can diced green chiles
4 green onions, chopped
1 tsp ground cumin
1/2 tsp chili powder
1 tsp salt
1/2 tsp cayenne pepper
20 egg roll wrappers

Avocado Ranch
3/8 cup mayonnaise
3/8 cup sour cream
3 Tbs buttermilk
1/2 Tbs olive oil
1/2 Tbs lemon juice
1/2 green onion, chopped
1/4 tsp salt
1 avocado, peeled and pitted

Preheat oven to 425F. Line 2 baking sheets with aluminum foil and spray lightly with cooking spray.

In a large bowl mix together corn, beans, spinach, cheese, chiles, onions, cumin, chili powder, salt and cayenne pepper.

Using a small spoon, scoop a small amount of filling onto the wrapper. Starting at a corner, carefully start to roll the wrapper. When it’s slightly rolled, tuck in the two sides and continue rolling to the last point. Wet your finger with water and dab a bit on the corner to seal the egg roll. Repeat with remaining wrappers and filling, placing them slightly apart on the baking sheet.

Lightly spray the tops of the egg rolls with cooking spray and bake for 15-20 minutes, flipping them at least once during baking.

Meanwhile, combine sauce ingredients in a blender and puree till smooth.

151 calories per roll, with sauce.  Click here for more nutritional info and shopping list!