Soooooo…
… I personally think I’m going to be furloughed for quite some time, so I am going to try and post daily recipes on this lovely blog and also tell you a bit more about me, my cooking and my favourite recipes and people. The rice balls are something I made up because spring is in full swing, I miss being outside, camping, the sea, all the things really. It’s a take on italian arancinis, but with some scandinavian flavours.
In 2015 I went on a cruise with my ex-partner and his family and had the opportunity to visit Norway and Denmark, including climbing a mountain to the top of a waterfall. I was so happy, when I reached the top and I was right behind the guide. It was such a push to my physical abilities, I will never forget that feeling.
I also remember a giant food market in Denmark, which was absolutely fantastic, I tried so much food and the flavours of the crispy rice balls took me right back there. I got so excited here, luckily I was alone for the whole day as my ex-partner wasn’t too interested in food and I could fangirl around at my own pace. I mean look at it!!
Here are your ingredients – again I mainly went with staple foods, so we don’t have to constantly go shopping, as I prefer to socially distance myself as much as possible.
Waitrose actually has some frozen herbs that I use quite frequently, my favourites are the frozen chopped garlic, dill and ginger. In this recipe I used the frozen dill and the frozen garlic, but you can also use the fresh ingredients.
- 1 cup of rice (an actual cup)
2 cups of tab water - 1 egg
- 30g of butter
- 1 heaped tablespoon of flour
- 2 tbs of capers
- 1 bunch of dill
- 1 lemon
- 3 cloves of garlic
- 1 carrot, 1 onion and 1 leek
Cook the rice, by adding exactly twice the water as you use rice, just use your favourite cup or mug for measuring, bring to a boil and then reduce the temperature.
Since you’re creating a paste, this doesn’t need to be perfect, if it’s a little sticky and lumpy, it will still turn out absolutely lovely.
The rice will take about 35 minutes to cook, in the meantime you can prep your vegetables and the seasoning. Don’t forget to season your water, it’s okay when it feels slighty too salty.
Also, my wonderful amazing and very handsome (hi, Dave) husband bought me a japanese knife, so my recipes all include a lot of fine chopping. Since you’re blending parts of this, don’t stress too much. Still, chop the carrot, onion, garlic and leek as finely as possible.
Fry them in a bit of butter until they’re golden and put them into a medium size bowl. Roughly chop the capers and the dill and add them. I usually use some of the brine of the capers too, just for more flavour. Remove the lemon zest with a fine grater and squeeze out the lemon juice. Add this to your bowl and season it with salt and pepper.
Check on your rice. If it’s cooked, but there is still water remaining, just put it through a sieve and leave it to dry for a few minutes.
Now put half of your rice and half of the mixed vegetables into a mixer and blend it until it’s a thick paste. Mix it with the remaining ingredients, add the flour and the egg and mix it with your hands. Preheat your oven to 200 degrees Celcius.
This will make about 12 balls, I shaped them with wet hands and put them onto a baking tray. Make sure your balls have the same size.
Put your rice balls in the oven and let them bake for 30-40 minutes, depending on how crispy you’d like them. My oven is slightly hotter in the front than it is in the back (it’s great fun when you’re baking… not!) so I turned the tray around after twenty minutes.
And that’s it!! I made two versions for my sides, one time I made them with cucumber salad and oven baked salmon and one time I made them with a tomato salad and grilled cauliflower with a lemon dressing.
But some just fell into my mouth while they were still hot without any sides or garnish AND I HAVE NO REGRETS 🙂
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
Jana Jarrett Nutrition 