Part 9 (2/2)

Here's our recipe for the sus.h.i.+ rolls that starred on the very first episode of The Post Punk Kitchen. Since then, it's also been a featured guest at many parties and potlucks, and in lunchboxes, and will become a super celebrity in your kitchen, too. Like any celeb worth her soy sauce, these nori rolls are highly photogenic and will win the love and admiration of friends and rivals, minus the trash talk on Page Six (of tabloid fame, not this book). Enough with the chitty-chat; let's roll!

P.S. This sus.h.i.+ is just fierce enough to accessorize with completely different fillings at a moment's notice. Don't miss out on the luscious variations, or mix it up and serve two or more at your next sus.h.i.+ soiree.

You'll need some extra equipment to make nori rolls. The bare essentials include: wasabi powder or prepared wasabi, shoyu (j.a.panese soy sauce) in small bowls for dipping, pickled sliced ginger, a bamboo sus.h.i.+ rolling mat, and chopsticks, of course!

Sus.h.i.+ rice is different from regular rice. It's a short-grain rice that is rather sticky, and comes in white and brown varieties. Use either type for this sus.h.i.+.

For the most flavorful nori, hold each sheet with metal tongs and toast very carefully over a medium flame for 30 seconds on each side, or until sheet turns from green to deep brownish-green.

For the sus.h.i.+ rice: 1 cup sus.h.i.+ rice

2 tablespoons rice vinegar (do not use regular white

vinegar)

1 teaspoon sugar

Spicy tempeh filling: (4-ounce) package tempeh

2 tablespoons prepared vegan mayonnaise or Silken

Mayo Dressing (page 103)

-1 teaspoon hot chile-sesame oil

4 sheets nori seaweed

1 scallion, white part discarded, sliced lengthwise

into narrow strips

1 ripe avocado, peeled, seeded, and sliced into -

inch-wide strips

1 tablespoon toasted or black sesame seeds if used

inside the roll, or cup if used as a coating for

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