Fruit Sushi

I loved sushi.  It is one thing that I do miss eating. . . sure I can go and still enjoy my veggie rolls, but I was always a sucker for a good rainbow roll and some sashimi.  One of my last meals before the vegan revolution took over was at D.C. top rated sushi restaurant, Sushi Taro.  And it was memorable!

Enter Fruit Sushi.

It was a chance for adventure at home.  Preparation would be interesting--I'd never rolled sushi before.  Flavor would turn out to be pretty interesting too--Nori and fruit is a weird combination, but half the process is learning.  Next time, I will have to make fruit leather and use it, instead.  Yum!

But aside from the fact that I made a royal mess of my kitchen (damn, is fruit sticky) and that I didn't account for how long rice takes to cook when I initially planned, this was pretty simple!

1. Prepare your sushi rice to recipe, substituting lite coconut milk for water.

2. Chop your choice of fruit into the desired pieces.  We had strawberries, blackberries, and kiwi to play with.  I recommend being colorful.  I used slices for my sushi and dices for my roll.

3. Make any sauces you would like.  I just chopped up extra of each fruit and mashed it with a fork between pushing it through a fine mesh sieve with a silicone spatula with a rapid back and forth motion.  I did this with both berries and kiwi.  Also, I had organic apricot preserves.

4. To assemble the sushi, make little rice ovals with your (wet) hands.  Then, spoon a little bit of preserves on top and finish with your fruit slices.  Ta-Da!  Fruit Sushi.

5. To assemble the rolls, take a sheet of nori (or fruit leather, if you think ahead) and cover it in sushi rice.  Flip it over so that the rice is facing down. Place your fruits onto the sheet and roll it.  Your best bet is to watch a video on you tube if you are unsure how to roll sushi.  This one was helpful to me.

6. Presentation is up to you.  Make your plate colorful.  Try drizzling your different syrups on your sushi.  Pair with a little bit of balsamic reduction.  Roll your sushi in sesame seeds or toasted coconut.  Pipe a little bit of avocado-lime whip and crushed pineapple on mint leaves to represent the usual wasabi and ginger.  The sky is the limit!

My favorite part of this is how the blackberries almost look like caviar.

I think that this is the perfect surprise dessert treat for a backyard barbeque or summer pool party.  It is refreshing and sweet, as well as attractive.  And trust me, your meat-eating neighbor/best friend/husband/mother will not only eat it and enjoy it. . . they will probably compliment you on your creativity!

What's not to Food-Love?