Lindsey's Kitchen: Candy Sushi

You don't have to like sushi to enjoy this fun recipe. I have to say as me and my husband are huge sushi fans this was a great dish to take to a sushi party we were invited to courtesy of my sister and her hubby.

I heard about this idea from a family member and thought I would give it a try and put my own spin on it. I added the coconut to make it look more like rice, came up with real sushi rolls that I would imitate (the red snapper and rainbow rolls), added the root beer syrup to emulate the ever popular "eel sauce", used the poppy seeds to look like the small fish eggs, and chocolate syrup for my "soy sauce" dip. My children were great spectators. They did more munching than helping though.

Candy Sushi

Ingredients:

2 tbsp butter
2 cups miniature marshmallows
3 cups crispy rice cereal
1 package of gummy worms
1 package rainbow colored Twizlers
2 boxes of color variety Fruit Roll-Ups
10-20 Swedish Fish

Preparation:

1. Prepare a 12x17” baking sheet by lining it with waxed paper and spraying the paper with nonstick cooking spray.

2. Place 2 tablespoons of butter in a large microwave-safe bowl, and microwave until melted, about 45 seconds.

3. Add 2 cups of miniature marshmallows to the bowl, and microwave until the marshmallows are completely melted, about 1 minute, stirring every 30 seconds. Stir the mixture until it is completely smooth.

4. Add 3 cups of rice cereal and stir until completely coated. Immediately pour mixture out onto the prepared baking sheet. Spray your hands with nonstick cooking spray, and begin to press the candy into the sheet in a thin layer. Begin working from the edge of the shorter side of the sheet. The mixture will only cover approximately half of the baking sheet.

5. With the short side of the baking sheet nearest you, place a pair of gummy worms along with twizlers an inch from the edge. Place another pair directly below, and repeat until you have a line of worms& twizlers stretching across the baking sheet.

6. Using the waxed paper to help you, roll the cereal mixture around the gummy worms, pressing firmly to make a tight roll. Take a large sharp knife and cut the log away from the rest of the mixture. Place it off to the side, and repeat the worms/rolling/cutting procedure for the remainder of the cereal.

7. Slice the logs into 1-inch rounds. Wrap each round in a strip of green-colored Fruit Roll-Ups.

8. To make the fish-topped “nigiri,” repeat steps 1-4 to make the rice candy base, but do not press the rice mixture as thinly. It should be about ¾ inch thick once pressed into the baking sheet.

9. Cut the candy into rectangles about ¾ inch by 1.5 inches. Place a candy fish on top of each rectangle, and wrap a ½-inch strip of green Fruit Roll-Up around the entire package.

10. For a finishing touch, decorate your sushi platter to look more authentic. Suggestions include substituting chocolate sauce for soy sauce, green-tinted whipped cream (or melted white chocolate) for wasabi, and thinly sliced pink fish for pickled ginger.

Here is the root beer syrup I used to emulate eel sauce on my rolls. The rainbow colored fruit roll ups and twizlers justify my rainbow rolls and the Swedish fish are the red snapper.