2 teaspoons toasted sesame seeds, crushed or whole

1/2 teaspoon sugar or honey

1 clove garlic, crushed

1 scallion, chopped

Preheat the oven to 425 F.

Warm the sesame oil in a large wok or nonstick pan over medium-high heat. Wait a minute or two for the pan and oil to heat, then add the onions and garlic. Saute for a few minutes, or until the onions begin to soften.

Add the carrots, asparagus and mushrooms, and mix together. Cook the vegetables until they just start to soften, 3 to 4 more minutes.

Add the peas and scallions. Season the vegetable mixture with salt, pepper and soy sauce. Taste and adjust any seasonings as needed. Cook until the vegetables become soft, 2 to 3 more minutes.

Add a teaspoon of sesame seeds and a few pinches of crushed red pepper, if desired. Toss together one last time, then remove from the heat and set aside to cool slightly.

To assemble the wontons, set up a work station with a small bowl of water close by. Fill one wonton wrap with about a tablespoon of the veggie filling and top with a 1/2 teaspoon of cream cheese; feel free to use a little more if desired.

To fold the wontons, dip your fingers in the water and wet one corner of the wonton skin wrapper. Pinch this corner together with the opposite corner, over the filling. Wet the other two corners and connect/tuck them into the middle. Press the corners together firmly. This should create a "pillow" shape.

Repeat with filling and shaping the remaining wonton wrappers. Transfer all the wontons to a baking sheet lined with a Silpat or parchment. Brush the wontons with egg wash and sprinkle with sesame seeds. Bake for 10 minutes or until crispy and golden brown.

Remove the wontons from the oven and allow to cool slightly before garnishing with more seaweed gomasio and the dried seaweed (gim).

For the sauce, combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Taste and adjust quantities, if desired. Serve with wontons.

Recipe notes:

These wontons can be made a few hours ahead and then served at room temperature. You can also prepare the wontons through assembling them, then cover them and refrigerate until you're ready to bake. Brush with egg wash just before baking.

For the sesame oil, I love the Kadoya brand "pure sesame oil." This is what I use for all my Asian cooking. This brand can be found at any Asian or Korean market.

Roasted sesame seeds can be found at any Asian market. I like the Assi brand Roasted Sesame Seeds. Seaweed Gomasio is a blend of sesame seeds, seaweed and sea salt, and it can be found at Whole Foods.

The dipping sauce recipe comes from The Kitchn's Emily Ho.

(Alice Choi is a writer for TheKitchn.com, a nationally known blog for people who love food and home cooking. Submit any comments or questions to editorial@thekitchn.com.)