Healthy (kinda) Egg Rolls - Low Carb and free book!

Hello, everybody! The Fresh Pioneer is back and I have a delicious recipe for those evenings when you want something a little different.

These are officially low carb, but they're not low calorie. So, you can decide whether it fits into your diet, or whether you can have just one with a salad. (I didn't have to think too hard about this since I'm not fond of cabbage OR Chinese food. No brainer!) But I knew this would be a big hit with the family, and since we've had wayyyyy too many cookies and sweets lately, this seems a fun way to get back on the road to real food.

 What you see is a doubled recipe (alert- family of EIGHT!) but the measurements I'll give are what is listed on the back of the package.

1lb pork sausage
2 cups cabbage
1/2 cup bean sprouts
1 cup shredded carrots
3 green onions, finely chopped
1 tsp minced ginger
1 tsp garlic
2TBS oyster sauce
one package egg roll wraps (made with rice)

 Brown pork sausage. Use thirteen year old child who does not appreciate her picture taken.

 After the pork is browned, add in the carrots, cabbage, garlic, ginger and green onions. Stir over high heat for 2-3 minutes, like a quick stir fry.

 Remove from the heat and add 2 TBS of the oyster sauce. I checked the back and there was no MSG but it still made me nervous. So far, so good. Usually anything with that many preservatives gives me a killer migraine but I saw this on a list for people who are sensitive to MSG and derivatives.

 So, let the mixture cool, then remove the rice paper wraps from the container. Put a small bowl of water near as you assemble the egg rolls.
Preheat oven to 400F.

Put about 2 tsp of mix in the middle. It smells DELICIOUS.

 Wrap it up like a little envelope, sealing the last flap with a bit of water.

 Ta-dah. Now, into the oven for about 12-15 minutes, until browned.

 I order these napkins from Macy's because I fell in love with this line of china. (Wait, you say... why order napkins if you love the china!?) The china was sooo crazy expensive, even on sale, that one mug cost $49! I mean, seriously. In this family, we could break hundreds of dollars in dishes a week that way!

 Anyway, so I got placemats and napkins. And they are SOOOO pretty. I'm going to try and paint a replica of it... but it might be a fail. I'll let you knew what happens.

 Looking tasty! Now, the original recipe called for green cabbage an I'm sort of seeing why. These babies look purple!

 Hubby was pretty excited to see this as his appetizer. (This couldn't be his whole meal. He needs a big salad and maybe some corn or green beans. But I took pictures before I put everything on there...)

 Dipping in the soy sauce... And the other sauce is a spicy and sour... my fave!

 Steaming hot and the veggies are still crisp!

 Now, while I was cooking, the kids were out playing in the garden. And across the fence lives a lovely woman named Sandy. She's a cook for one of the elementary schools and she must think my kids are missing out on the goodness of cafeteria food (the good kind, not the horrible kind) becuase she always sends plates of goodies over! So, dessert appeared in front of me... angel food cake with a chocolate glaze and vanilla pudding middle. YUMMY.

I wasn't really sold on the oven baked part, so I fried the last batch in about an inch of oil, turning until each side was crispy. I really thought they tasted so much better... but of course, it raises the calorie content as well. I think if you only have one or two, the frying doesn't make a difference. For hubby, I think I'll keep his baked because he ate about seven. That would be a lot of grease!

Before I get to the free book part, I wanted to show you the coolest thing my husband made. Built in bookshelves! 

That's about 20 feet of bookshelves... isn't it awesome?? It took a while, even with all the shortcuts, but I show you all the pics next week. But I'm still swooning over them. Finally, all our books will be organized!

Here is working on it... and even though I told him, "It will be SO easy!", it really wasn't. But I'll share that next time. For now, enjoy the egg rolls and the... FREE BOOK!

Ok, everyone! Have a wonderful Wendesday and if you haven't read it yet, Purple Like the West is FREE!! It's the second in my historical romance series. And it fits right in with the recipe because the book is all about the Chinese laborers in California at the turn of the century.

 Here's the blurb: 

    Margaret Gilbert, a railroad executive’s daughter, is a pampered princess of San Francisco’s wealthy elite, but she chafes under the expectation that she will marry for status and dreams of independence. When she joins the local Ladies’ Aid Society, she’s horrified by the treatment of the Chinese immigrant laborers. Vowing to expose the abuse, she begins to investigate the complicated system of slave labor provided to the railroads, but no one will listen to a woman like her. 

When she meets Ezra Pendleton, heir to a newspaper empire, she concocts a plan to tell the world- without incurring the wrath of her father. Ezra is the perfect cover. She’ll make her family happy by feigning interest in a very eligible bachelor, become an undercover reporter, and keep her identity a secret.
         At least, that was the idea. Margaret starts to wonder if Ezra will turn out to be her plan’s fatal flaw. He is not the sort of man you can string along with flattery. He’s smart, wary, and is hiding a secret of his own. As the city falters under the stress of the Chinese mobs, the situation turns more dangerous than they could have imagined. Racial tensions in the city hit a breaking point and arson erupts close to home. By the time there is an outbreak of the plague in Chinatown, it seems as if all the darkest parts of the city will be revealed at once.
     Margaret and Ezra are thrown together in a common cause, but will their secrets destroy the love that  is growing between them? A story of faith, honor, and forgiveness.