Two favorites, wrapped into one delicious little package. I’m talking about lox in the form of a summer roll. Don’t let name fool you – no matter the season, summer rolls make a fantastic light lunch or healthy snack. 
Lox, often found in a Jewish deli, and not to be confused with smoked salmon, is made from the belly of the fish and salt-cured. A similar preparation would be gravlax – a traditional Scandinavian method of preparation, the salmon is packed in a salt-sugar mixture, with dill, and sometimes a liquor like akvavit. Either one would be fine for this application. 
Summer rolls are traditionally made with vermicelli noodles and a protein such as shrimp or pork. However, summer rolls are wonderfully adaptable, so you can tailor them to basically whatever you like. With this particular recipe, it’s a bit of Jewish deli meets Vietnam.
Working with the rice paper wrapper takes a little practice, so try to have a sense of humor if you’re trying this for the first time. It doesn’t take long to get the feel for it, just remember a few important things like:
- If you’re working on a porous surface, like a wooden board, lightly wet the surface. Otherwise the wrapper will stick to the surface.
- Don’t soak the wrappers for too long. Just a few seconds will do, and it should still be pretty firm when you transfer it to the work surface (the wrapper will continue to soften as you add the filling).
- Layer the filling so that the softer ingredients are on the outside. This will prevent the corners of the harder ingredients from poking holes in the wrapper.
After a little practice, you’ll be cranking out these little beauties! 
- [b]Avocado-Lime Dipping Sauce[/b]
- 1/4 cup greek yogurt
- 1/2 and avocado
- 1/2 cup fresh cilantro
- 1 lime, zested and juiced
- 1 jalapeno
- 1 tablespoon fresh mint, roughly chopped
- 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt
- freshly ground black pepper, to taste
- [b]Lox Summer Rolls[/b]
- 4 rice paper rounds
- 1 large Hass avocado + the remaining half from the dipping sauce
- 3 ounces lox
- 2 ounces cucumber, seeded and cut into sticks about 5 inches in length
- 2 ounces red onion, thinly sliced
- a few sprigs of dill
- 1 cup lettuce (I used mixed greens)
- In the bowl of a food processor, add all of the ingredients for the Avocado-Lime Dipping Sauce. Puree until smooth and add additional salt and pepper if needed. If you’d like the dipping sauce to be a little looser, just add a little water until you get the desired consistency.
- Fill a large bowl with room temperature water. Working with one rice paper wrapper at a time, dip it into the water so the entire round is submerged. As soon as you have wet the entire round, remove it from the water and lay it on your work surface (the rice paper wrapper will be fairly stiff, but it will continue to soften as you work).
- Arrange some of the avocado slices in the center bottom 1/3 of the wrapper. Then top with the salmon, cucumber, red onion, dill, and lettuce.
- Fold each side of the wrapper over the filling. Then roll up from the bottom, while using your fingers to compress the filling into the wrapper – roll tightly.
- Slice in half, serve with the Avocado-Lime dipping sauce and enjoy!
These look so yummy! I’m considering adding a very thin slice of lemon (rind and all) for added freshness. I would like to have these for dinner and then make a few extra for lunches. How long do the spring rolls keep in the fridge?
Hi Celene! I’d be interested to know how the lemon zest turns out – I could certainly see it adding a little zing to the rolls! So as not to overpower though, I would suggest using microplane instead of cutting thin strips of lemon – a little goes a long way 🙂 As for how they keep – I have made these for dinner and then had leftovers for lunch. Simply wrap individual rolls tightly in plastic wrap, store in an air-tight container, and refrigerate. Take them out about 30 minutes before you plan to eat them so that they come back to room temp. Hope you enjoy!
how do you grab a pacific northwest girl’s attention? you salmon up a summer roll. i am especially drawn in by how the lox amps up the stained glass effect. then there’s that dipping sauce… after reading the list of ingredients, i am thinking it sounds like a spoon to mouth share. yum city.
one more thing ~ i always feel your sincerity when you type to all of us; your heart pops right off the page each and every post. now these videos… i don’t know how to say it… just… wow! i hope it does not sound creepy, but i can feel the energy you pour into the task. your spirit is quite extraordinary. thank you for the shared love, kathleen 🙂
Oh my gosh, that means to much to me! Writing is what I struggle with the most, so it makes me so happy to hear that you can hear my voice come through 🙂 And I’m so glad you enjoy the new videos too! I want to build up to actually speaking at some point – Oooo…. scary! 😉
Oh my goodness, Kathleen! I’m a disaster with the rice papers! This video is awesome and inspiring me to try again!
Once you get the hang of it, you’ll be rolling em’ like I pro! Hope the video helps!
The video is beautiful, Kathleen! I have never met a summer roll in didn’t like, and I would love to meet these spring rolls.The combination of lox and fresh vegetables and avocado lime dipping sauce sounds amazing! I agree with hipiefoodmom, your hands are lovely—they put mine to shame! 🙂
Me too! I love them for a light lunch! And I never feel guilty about eating a bunch of them 😉
Summer rolls are the best and I always use plain ol’ shrimp in mine. You have opened a whole new world to me by using smoked salmon. I love salmon, especially when it’s smoked and I’ll eat it for breakfast wrapped around avocado slices so this recipe is perfect for me. Trying it next time I make summer rolls 🙂
It sounds like you and I would be breakfast buddies 🙂
Wow! So beautiful! From your hands…to your choice of music…to this lovely recipe. It was so artistic… Brava!
Aww… thanks, Annie! It’s my first video, so that means a lot 🙂
I just had the best lox ever near you in SF at the Palace Hotel and I’m craving it all over again. This is a delicious way to enjoy it and the dip sounds so good.
Ooo… good to know! And it looks like they serve afternoon tea – that would be fun for upcoming Valentines Day. Thanks for the tip sweetie! xo!
Omg. I have an addiction to lox and I LOVE summer rolls, so these beauties are right up my alley! But it would be so much better if they were right in my belleh! 😉 These look beyond delish! And that avocado lime dipping sauce sounds perfect! Pinned! Cheers, girlie!
Your addiction is shared my dear – I think I could have everyday!
Kathleen, LOVE your spin on summer rolls and loved the video!!! you have beautiful hands!!!!
Aww… thanks! Funny thing is my hands are huge! Seriously, they’re bigger than most guys – which is why I got the nickname ‘man hands’ ie. from Seinfeld 😛 They may be big, but at least they’re slender. Should have played the piano 😉