Everyone loves a good sweet and sour dip, especially when there are beautiful summer rolls to accompany it. There’s no marinating or dehydrating time involved in making this party favourite, but you’ve gotta get organised and work systematically. Rice paper wrappers can be tricky to play with and may require some practice at first. They are pretty cheap, so buy extra and remember to have fun practicing. The stunning results are worth the effort!

Here's the step-by-step video on how to make yours! The full recipe is also below...

For the summer rolls:

pack of 12 rice paper wrappers (the ones I use are 22cm/8.5in in diameter)

lettuce leaves

veggies (carrots, cucumbers, red peppers, asparagus, celery and bean sprouts work well)

herbs and flowers (parsley, basil, mint and pansies or other edible flowers)

For the sweet & sour dip:

4 tbsp raw apple cider vinegar

4 tbsp agave nectar

4 sundried tomatoes halves in oil

juice of 1 lemon

1 inch fresh ginger

1 tbsp tamari

100g pineapple, chopped into tiny cubes

-Julienne or slice all the veggies into thin long strips. Set them and the herbs out within easy reach of a clean chopping board. Cover the chopping board with kitchen towel.

-Half fill a bowl big enough to fit the rice papers in with hot water, then dunk one at a time until pliable and lay flat over the kitchen towel.

-Arrange two edible flowers or basil leaves, if using, face down in the middle. Top with veggies which won’t blend with the colours of your herbs (carrots over basil leaves or cucumbers over purple pansies make them pop!), then top with other vegetable strips and a line of parsley, careful not to bunch them up in the middle.

-Bring the bottom edge of the wrapper tightly up over the filling, and fold the sides in over it. Continue to roll up tightly and place on a plate, joint-side down. Cover rolls with lettuce leaves to keep them fresh, while preparing the sauce.

-Blend all the sauce ingredients, except pineapple cubes, in a small travel blender, pour it into a dipping bowl, sprinkle with pineapple and serve along side the spring rolls.

Tanya’s Top Tip: Check out the homemade tea recipe on page 39 of The Uncook Book for ideas on what edible flowers you can use for this recipe.

People often ask me if raw food is all about crunching carrot sticks. I can’t help myself but giggle and reply with a “nope, it’s also about drinking carrot juice, blending carrots into soup, applying grated carrot as face masks and chewing carrot cake”. I do love my giant orange Vitamin A pills! I also really love this carrot cake and think you’ll be pleasantly surprised at how similar it tastes to the baked favourite.

The recipe is from my book, The Uncook Book (which is now also available in Polish!)

For the cake

150g pitted dates, soaked

70g dried pineapple, chopped

750g carrots, grated and squeezed to remove excess liquid

50g ground flaxseeds

60g ground gluten-free oats

70g coconut oil

75g maple syrup

2 tsp mixed spice

1 tsp cinnamon

½ tsp Himalayan salt

For the frosting

1 C soaked Cashews

3 TBSP coconut oil

3 TBSP agave

juice of 1 Lemon

1 tbsp vanilla extract

-Prepare the cake layer first by processing dates and pineapple in a food processor, till they become chutney-like.

-Add remaining ingredients and process again till well combined. Transfer the cake mix into a 9 inch spring-form tin, press firmly.

-To prepare the frosting, firstly scrape out the seeds from a whole vanilla pod. To do so, slice the pod in half lengthwise, then use a teaspoon to literally scrape all the seeds out until the inside of the pod is dry.

-Transfer all the frosting ingredients to a high speed blender and blend on ‘high’. Pour it over the cake and transfer to the fridge to set. Alternatively, if you prefer a runnier frosting, remove the cake from the tin and pour icing over it when serving.

Tanya’s Top Tip:

The base of the cake tin is not completely flat, as it has raised edges. To remove the cake easily without losing any of it that may catch on this ridge, insert the base into the adjustable tin ring so that the ridge faces downwards.

Click on the video above to watch on YouTube or go straight there: https://youtu.be/zV2uqCJiYGA