Sushi wraps are tasty, easy, fun

Annie Chun's Sprouted Brown Rice Sushi Wraps. $3.89 per 7-ounce box containing sushi wraps, rice bowl and soy sauce packet.

Bonnie: Annie Chun's has a make-your-own sushi kit. What fun! Annie provides the rice, seaweed wraps and soy sauce. You select your filling — leftover meats, fish, veggies, fruit or even cheese — and roll that with the cooked rice in the seaweed.

The rice in this version is sprouted brown, which is unhulled brown rice soaked overnight so that it begins to germinate. That rice has a softer texture and is more easily digested than regular brown rice. It also has slightly more nutrition than regular brown rice and 4 grams of fiber.

My only complaint is the missing condiments. What, no pickled ginger or wasabi?

Carolyn: I'm not a fan of seaweed — either when swimming or eating. I've been further alienated from sushi by stories of chefs who spend years learning how to prepare it. Five minutes of microwaving is about as long as I'm willing to devote to making dinner on a weekday (lunch gets even less time).

But amazingly, it takes only about two minutes to make a sushi roll from Annie Chun's kit: One minute for the rice to cook just about perfectly, and the other minute to place that rice and something else you have in the house on the seaweed (also called "nori") and roll it up. Even I could do it!

The seaweed wraps still taste like seaweed, but you don't have to fill them with raw fish. In fact Annie's suggestions of string cheese, pastrami, bacon and eggs, and peanut butter seem designed to give this traditional Asian food American snack appeal. This actually got me rooting through the refrigerator for different fillings — having much more fun and eating many more rolls than I ever imagined.

I don't recommend using peanut butter (too salty) or dates (which were overwhelmed by the powerful seaweed during one of my experiments). But sweet, ripe cantaloupe provided a wonderful balance to the nori's saltiness. If only all sushi wraps were as tasty, affordable and fun as these I made with the help of Annie Chun.

Nabisco Garden Harvest Toasted Chips. Apple Cinnamon, Banana, Tomato Basil, and Vegetable Medley. $2.99 per 6-ounce bag.

Bonnie: Nabisco has just introduced new whole-grain chips containing a quarter-cup of fruit or vegetables in each serving. Odd is the way I'd describe these: an odd concept and odd-tasting.