Leftover rice cake

Ok, this isn’t going to win any awards for beauty, and it’s nothing you’re going to brag to your mother about to demonstrate your amazing cooking skills. This is just another way to use up leftover rice (or risotto), that isn’t fried rice. Cheese is sprinkled over the top and baked..so er…it’s a bit like a savoury icing…?

It’s like a massive vege burger in a way, with grilled cheese on top, crispy crumby cheese edges, and a nice moist middle. The bonus is that you don’t need to get your hands dirty shaping any patties, and you don’t need to dip the patties into breadcrumbs. I’m considering making all my vege burger recipes like this from now on – you can still cut them into wedges and put them in a sandwich or bun. No sitting by the pan, no keeping the patties hot in a warm oven. Plenty of time to whip up a salad or even steamed veges and serve them piping hot at the same time. This is incredibly versatile too. I made a very stripped down version because I was lazy, but you could add sauteed mushrooms or herbs or even more cheese, or flecks of roasted red pepper. Grated zucchini? Chopped olives? Pumpkin mash? The opportunities! It’s like arancini for lazy people without deep fryers! Ok, so it’s not really like arancini at all, please apologise to your Italian grandmother for me.

Makes one 8″ cake. You will need a cast iron pan with a lid (doesn’t have to match perfectly though)

• about 1 tightly packed cup of rice/risotto
• 2-3 slices of crumby bread that will be your breadcrumbs (can be gluten free)
• 1 egg
• about 3/4c grated strong cheese, like parmesan (I used sheep’s cheese) (halve this amount if using risotto)
• a few Tbs oil
• salt and pepper
• optional: herbs, whatever veges you want (preferably cooked), little cooked beans/lentils… (I used black eyed peas and the rice had some red lentils in)
• about 1/2c grated/sliced melting cheese (I just used cheapo colby, but taleggio would be great if using parmesan…or you could use brie or something)

Preheat oven to 200C, with a rack at the very top of your oven.

Oil your pan fairly generously (you want a nice coating on the bottom, but you’re not shallow frying). Either process your breadcrumbs in one of those fancy wee food processors or tear it up and shimmy it through a sieve/colander so the crumbs fall into your oiled pan. You just want the crumbs to coat the bottom of the pan nicely, and up the sides a bit. Use leftovers in the cake.

In a bowl mix everything else together with a fork, except for the melting cheese. If using beans it is good to really smush them in there. Your mixture should be moist – the consistency of mince. If not add more oil or another egg if it’s very dry (will depend how dry your rice is). Plop the mixture into your dish and with the back of a spoon shape it into a large pattie. Sprinkle the melting cheese over the top and cover. Place in oven for 20 minutes, then uncover and return to oven for another 10-15 minutes, until the cheese is goldenish on top (I was too hungry to wait…).

Serve with a salad or steamed veges or whatever you like.

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