The lamb chops were a given for dinner tonight. i had picked them up Monday and actually planned to have them last night. The soup trumped the chops for one meal, but I don’t like keeping raw meats in the ‘fridge more than a day or two.
So lamb chops were a given. The side dish wasn’t.
Staring blankly in the cupboard – hoping for inspiration or Divine Intervention – I saw five different kinds of rice. But plain ol’ rice with grilled lamb chops just didn’t seem right. The wheels started turning and the next thing I knew, Rice Cakes were being born!
I had thought of a risotto rice cake that I’ve made in the past and, not wanting to make risotto, just came up with a recipe on the fly. I used a whole grain mahogany rice but you can use what you like. I definitely had to refrigerate the rice balls before making them into patties. If I had used a stickier rice they probably wouldn’t have been as fussy.
Rice Cakes
- 1 1/2 cups cooked rice, cooled
- 1/2 cup panko bread crumbs
- 1/2 cup chopped walnuts
- 2 scallions, chopped
- 2 tbsp sour cream
- 1/4 cup crumbled gorgonzola cheese
- 2 eggs
- 1 tsp garlic powder
- sat and pepper, to taste
Mix all ingredients and scoop into equal-sized portions. Refrigerate at least 30 minutes.
Lightly press down to form patty. Carefully dredge in more panko bread crumbs and fry in skillet until browned. Carefully flip and continue cooking until browned and heated through.
I do have to admit that these were pretty good. They had a great crunch, the rice was creamy, and the walnuts gave another nice texture. The recipe made 8 cakes. I froze four of them for a later date.
The lamb chops were marinated in olive oil, garlic, red wine, and rosemary before being grilled.
A reasonably simple dinner.