Rice Fritters

Have I told you I love Panko bread crumbs yet? I LOVE Panko bread crumbs!

They are super crunchy and are a great way to add a crispy element to a dish. I always get the crunch roll when I get sushi, because its shrimp tempura and crab rolled in a pile of super crunchy panko deliciousness*drool*. Anyways, I was excited when I saw this recipe because I love Panko, rice, and mozzarella, so they must be great altogether right? Well I got this recipe from http://www.janetishungry.blogspot.com/, and I am sad to say that I was disappointed! Janet, the blogger, says that these are amazing and her family loves them, so I think it might of been me. I used plain rice that was slightly overcooked, and since I didn't have cubed mozzarella so I balled up some shredded cheese, but I don't think I used enough.

My suggestions with this recipe:

-There are no measurements with this recipe, because it depends on the amount of rice you have. Original blogger said to start with one egg and 1/2 cup of panko and to go from there.

-Used the the cubed mozzarella, or just a lot of shredded, just don't be stingy!

-These need...something. It needs for flavor somewhere, but I cant put my finger on it. Maybe some cayenne in the panko? Or herbed rice? You tell me!


Rice Fritters (from www.janetishungry.blogspot.com)
Ingredients:
Leftover rice
Panko crumbs
Eggs
Mozzarella Cheese
Dipping Sauce (Marinara Style)

1. Shape the rice into balls that are, in diameter, precisely halfway in between a walnut and a golf ball... just kidding! Just make your balls "yay big".

2. Cut some mozzarella into little cubes (about 1 cm square).

3. Make a depression with your finger in each rice ball and press in a mozzarella cube. Close the rice back up to completely enclose the ooey-gooey mozzarella goodness.

4. Roll the rice balls around in beaten egg, and then in panko crumbs until well coated.

5. Chill in the fridge for 30 minutes or so, to set coating.

6. Preheat oven to 400F (use convection if you have it). Place the rice balls on a baking sheet that you've sprayed with cooking spray. Spray more cooking spray on top of the rice balls. Bake for about 15 to 20 minutes until golden brown. Turn them around and give them another squirt of cooking spray halfway through. (FYI - the original recipe called for these to be deep fried, but I don't like to deep fry at home).

7. Serve with your favorite marinara-type dipping sauce (I used canned pizza sauce).

Doesn't that look good? I'm determined to find a way to make it taste just as good! Little sis Jordie liked them, so not all is lost!

P.S. Speaking of Jordie, Sunday for dinner my mom made chili and cornbread for dinner. The chili was good, but Jordie got to the cornbread before I did:

Can you guess which piece was hers?