Dear Stephanie,
Thank you so much for this recipe (Note from editor: recipe follows). It sounds fabulous. When my husband and I ate at the restaurant it was just a plain rice cake as a side with our salmon and I loved it. This is quite a bit fancier, but we can have it plain as just a rice cake or we can make it completely as the recipe is meant to be. I have never used sushi rice so it will be a bit tricky, but I will try it.
Thank you again for your prompt response. It is very kind of you.
Happy holidays to you too!
Natha O.
Musubi (Rice Cakes)
Makes 4 Servings
Rice Cakes:
1 Cup Uncooked short-grain white sushi rice
1 Cup Water
3 Tablespoons Rice vinegar
1½ teaspoons Sugar
Toppings:
3 Scallions
2 Cups Spinach, basil or kale
6 slices Canadian bacon or Prosciutto
6 slices Cheese (Havarti or Jarlsburg work well)
1 Tomato, sliced thin
6 Eggs
¼ Cup Olive Oil
Chopped garlic scapes or chives for garnish (optional)
For the Rice Cakes:
1. Fill a large pot with water and swirl in the rice. Drain. Repeat 3 times until the water runs clear. Drain. Set aside in a bowl to dry for at least one hour.
2. Bring 1 cup water to a boil in a medium saucepan. Add rice; turn heat to low, cover and simmer 20 minutes. Remove from heat when liquid is absorbed and the rice is al dente. Spread rice out on a cookie sheet and cover with a towel to cool. (Traditionally the cooked rice would be spread out in a flat bottom, large wooden bowl and the rice would be fanned to cool.)
3. Mix together the rice vinegar and sugar in a small bowl until sugar is dissolved. Stir the vinegar mixture into the rice very gently, using a wide, flat wooden spoon or spatula, being careful not to break the grains.
4. Wet your hands and form the rice into 4 hamburger-size patties. Use a hamburger press that has also been wetted with water if you’d like, but be careful not to press too hard; you want the rice to stick together, but don’t want to break the grains.
5. Place the cakes on a silicon- or parchment- lined cookie sheet. Cover and refrigerate until ready to use.
For The Toppings:
1. Julienne the green parts of the scallion.
2. Heat a few tablespoons of olive oil in a skillet over medium-high heat. Place rice cakes in the skillet and cook until lightly brown about 3 – 5 minutes. Flip and cook until golden brown on the second side.
3. Place one slice of cheese on each rice cake.
4. Sauté greens (spinach or kale) in a second skillet just enough to gently wilt. Divide greens equally on rice cakes. (If you are using basil just add the fresh leaf atop the rice cake)
5. Lightly brown Canadian bacon in the now-empty skillet and layer each slice atop the spinach.
6. Add a tomato slice to each.
7. Prepare the eggs – fried, scrambled, over easy or poached – and serve atop rice cakes.
8. Garnish with scallion greens, garlic scapes or chives.
This is a nice alternative to the typical breakfast starch options and is perfect for our gluten-free guests at Harrison House and Tucker House inns. It is also quite versatile. Serve it with any number of topping including salmon or crab, or over a stir-fry for dinner.