Don’t I just love a new food store find! The joy of discovering little foodie gems in local malls and unpretentious places is nourishment for the soul.

Such was the experience recently at Wentworth Falls in the Blue Mountains, 2 hours west of Sydney.

After a lovely coffee in a converted Post Office we found a little store called ‘the Blue Elephant’ which specialises in sub-continental & Asian spices, condiments & foodstuffs.

The first thing, after the heady smell of curry powder struck you, was how much somebody/somebodies loved this shop.

It was set up with care and lots of thoughtful planning by people who genuinely love food and equally love sharing it with others.

There was a handsome handmade model of a blue elephants head suspended over the main serving counter and the service was friendly & enthusiastically informative.

The staff were making some Vietnamese rice paper rolls on the back counter, which we purchased making a delicious snack for the car ride home.

I was inspired that night to make my own rice paper rolls!  That’s what a good food experience does to you.

The other great find for me was these small packets(pictured) of Sina Ginger Candy – a great natural sugar hit with a perfect punch of ginger.

Buy these any way you can – they are worth stocking up on and apparently have health benefits too!

Donna’s Rice Paper Rolls

Version 1

• shredded chicken breast
• cooked drained vermicelli
• pan fried beaten egg, cut into thin pieces
• finely julienned carrot & cucumber
• fresh coriander
• Version 2
•  peeled cooked prawns
• avocado cut into strips
• cooked drained vermicelli
• fresh mint
• Version 3
• For this version I create a mix of brown rice, tofu, oven roasted pumpkin with honey and walnuts
• and then mix through a combination of garden herbs.