Buffalo Chicken Rolls

The week between Christmas and New Year’s Day was a lazy one, and I filled my days with so many of the things I never seem to make time for the rest of the year. I watched more movies in those few days than I think I’d seen the rest of the year. I also read books – actual fiction books, not just cookbooks (though I did browse those too of course)! It reminded me how much I love reading, so I’ve definitely made it a goal to read more in 2012. One of the other highlights of the week was spending time discovering some new-to-me blogs. I added several to my Google Reader, including Andie’s blog, Can You Stay for Dinner? It’s full of great recipes, and I really enjoy her writing style. She lost 135 pounds a few years ago, and talks openly about that too – really inspiration stuff!

These buffalo chicken rolls were the first recipe I made from her site. As the NFL playoffs approach, and many of us start looking for snack/appetizer-type foods to serve while watching the games, these are a worthy contender. They’re full of all the things you love about buffalo chicken wings, wrapped neatly in egg roll wrappers and baked to crispy perfection! I made mine with shredded chicken coated in buffalo sauce, crumbled blue cheese and thinly sliced celery, but they’re highly adaptable so you could really use whatever you like. The original recipe called for broccoli slaw instead of the celery, but I had celery on hand and was trying to use it up (I swear, there’s always celery dying a slow death in my produce drawer).

One more thing – I tried to include quantities below, but I really don’t measure anything when I make these. As long as you don’t overfill the wrappers, you can vary the quantities all you want. Oh, and don’t be too worried if you can’t fold the wrapper perfectly. I had to make these 3 times before any of mine looked remotely like the original 🙂

Buffalo Chicken Rolls
adapted from Can You Stay for Dinner?

{I didn’t take step by step pictures, but you can find some great ones on Andie’s blog using the above link.}

3/4 lb boneless, skinless chicken breasts, cooked and shredded (about 2 cups)
1 cup hot sauce
12 egg roll wrappers
1 cup crumbled blue cheese
1/2 cup celery, thinly sliced
water
nonstick cooking spray
blue cheese or ranch dressing, for serving

Preheat oven to 400 F. Set a wire rack inside a rimmed baking sheet and spray the rack with cooking spray.

Stir the chicken and hot sauce together in a medium bowl until moistened – you can use more or less sauce depending on how spicy you want your rolls.

Place one egg roll wrapper on a clean work surface. Add about 1 tablespoon of the celery on the diagonal of the bottom right corner. Top with about 2-3 tablespoons of the chicken, and finally some blue cheese crumbles. Be careful not to overfill the wrappers.

To fold the roll: Bring the bottom right corner up and over the filling to cover it completely and make it snug. Fold each side over to form an envelope, then roll the wrap almost all the way to the top. Wet your finger with water and moisten the top corner, then fold it over the roll, pressing to seal. Place the roll on the prepared rack.

Repeat with the remaining wrappers and filling.

Spray each roll lightly with nonstick cooking spray. Bake for 15-20 minutes (flipping the rolls halfway through), or until the rolls are golden brown and crisp. Allow to cool for a few minutes, then serve with either blue cheese or ranch dressing.