Wake up and smell the Arborio! Lemon rice pancakes with fried prosciutto
By Julie Cader
There’s something about the natural aroma of cooking California Arborio rice with vanilla and cinnamon in the wee hours of the morning. It seems to awaken even the grumpiest person in the household.
Or maybe it’s the smell of lean and tasty prosciutto fried in coconut oil that does the trick. Either way, a breakfast of lemon rice pancakes with fried prosciutto is a wonderful way to start the day.
Directions
Rice – Makes three cups of cooked rice
Bring two cups of water, the juice of ½ lemon, a pinch of salt, 1/2 teaspoon of ground cinnamon, 1/2 teaspoon of vanilla extract and a pat of butter to a boil in a medium saucepan. Stir in one cup of Lundberg’s California White Arborio rice, return to a boil, and then reduce the heat to the lowest setting. Cook until rice has absorbed the water, about 15-20 minutes. Cool rice.
Fried Prosciutto – two to three pieces per person
Melt one tablespoon of coconut oil in a large frying pan. Add slices of prosciutto to the pan, and brown 3-4 minutes until crispy. Set aside on paper towels until ready to serve.
Lemon Pancakes – Batter makes 12-14 cakes
In a large bowl, mix 1 cup of flour, two teaspoons of baking powder, two tablespoons each of cane sugar and brown sugar, a pinch of salt and 1 teaspoon of ground cinnamon.
In another smaller bowl, combine ¾ cup of milk, the juice of 1/2 lemon, one tablespoon of olive oil, and two large eggs. Beat mixture until well blended and then stir into flour mixture.
Add cooled rice and stir.
Pour ¼ cup of batter for each pancake into a preheated nonstick skillet and cook cakes for 5-8 minutes until browned. Flip and cook 5-7 minutes on the other side until cakes are golden and cooked.
Serve sprinkled with powdered sugar and warm maple syrup, alongside the fried prosciutto. Mangia bene, vivi felice!