Crispy Herbed Rice Patties

The little one munched these and then asked “what is it”? Crispy rice patties were such a fun side dish, and became a perfect dish to prep in advance! I saw Catherine McCord make a really plain crispy rice cakes on an Instagram story but I see her website has some fun flavors in these rice cakes.  I wanted mine to really highlight some herbs and cheese. The herbs are going bananas out back so I put ’em to work!
The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Rice Patties

Crispy Herbed Rice Patties with Cheese

Ingredients:

1 cup brown rice, cooked
2 eggs
3/4 cup smoked gouda
1/2 cup shredded mozzarella
1 tablespoon basil
1 tablespoon oregano
1 teaspoon thyme
1 teaspoon rosemary

Directions:

Add together the rice, eggs, cheeses, and herbs, with salt and pepper.
The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Rice Patties
Mix well until well incorporated.
The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Rice Patties
Form into patties and fry in a shallow pan of oil over medium heat for 2-3 minutes on each side OR heavily spray a pan and bake at 400 degrees for 15 minutes.
The Three Bite Rule - Crispy Rice Patties
Serve and enjoy!

These would be great in lots of flavors. Maybe next time I’ll have to include some bacon and top them with an egg!

I loved these! I was prepping them in advance so I undercooked most of them and popped them into the toaster oven to warm and toast for dinner. They were a hit! Of course I cooked the  rice in my pressure cooker- hello 15 minute brown rice! I pan fried a few and they stayed together! Woohoo! I also put some into a whoopie pie pan and baked them. Both methods worked so well! I’d skip frying them next time

Heirloom Tomato Flatbreads

Fastest. Dinner. Ever. I popped these flatbreads onto the grill and had dinner ready in no time!

The Three Bite Rule - Heirloom Tomato Flatbread
As summer wraps I’m soaking up all the tomatoes I can get my hands on. I sliced some heirloom tomatoes and made a little crunchy topping. The little one loved the topping and pinched it off the top of his pieces.

Heirloom Tomato Flatbreads, Serves 3

Ingredients:

2 Naan or 1 flatbread
1/4 cup tomato sauce
2 cups shredded mozzarella
2-3 heirloom tomatoes
2 tablespoons butter
1 tablespoon truffle oil
3 tablespoons panko breadcrumbs

Directions:

Shred the cheese, slice the tomatoes, and preheat the grill (or oven).
In a small saucepan over medium heat, melt the butter, add the truffle oil, and breadcrumbs. Toast for about 5 minutes and remove from the heat so they don’t burn.
Put the flatbread onto the grill over low heat (or oven to high heat). Top with tomato sauce, cheese, and sliced tomato.
The Three Bite Rule - Heirloom Tomato Flatbread
Cook the flatbreads for 5 minutes until the cheese melts.
The Three Bite Rule - Heirloom Tomato Flatbread
Sprinkle the breadcrumb topping over the top. Slice & enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Heirloom Tomato Flatbread
Be careful – flatbreads cook so quickly on the grill. I heated it up and turned it down and they really only need a minute or two. Be ready with those toppings! I had work folks over and they were gracious eaters despite the fact that the flatbreads were a bit to crisp!

Greek Deviled Eggs

Once again, my go-to appetizer that doesn’t need reheating comes into play, with a Greek twist! I love greek flavors and this was a great vehicle for it! I added fresh oregano and caesar dressing to the filling and topped them with cucumber, feta, and tomato.
The Three Bite Rule - Greek Deviled Egg

Greek Deviled Eggs (makes 24 halves)

Ingredients:

1 dozen eggs
1/4 cup mayonase
1/4 cup creamy Caesar dressing
1 tablespoon fresh oregano, chopped
2 teaspoons yellow mustard
salt & pepper
1/4 cucumber, chopped
6 cherry tomatoes, chopped
2 tablespoons feta

Directions:

Hard boil the eggs, then put into an ice water bath and completely cool before cracking the shell. Overnight!
Crack the shells, slice in half, and pop the yolks into a bowl. Add in the mayo, dressing, oregano, salt, and pepper.
The Three Bite Rule - Greek Deviled Egg
Stir well until fully blended, then spoon to a ziplock bag.
Snip the bottom corner and pipe into the egg white halves.
Top with cucumber, tomato, and feta. Enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Greek Deviled Egg
These were a hit! I think the toppings gave these a fresh element and told everyone what flavors were in here. I loved the oregano and caesar in there. Hmm. What’s next? I don’t have any more in mind right now, but they go quickly at a party and span a bunch of dietary restrictions…plus, they don’t need reheating making them a star.

My other deviled egg variations:
Taco Spiced Deviled Eggs
Bacon Ranch Deviled Eggs
Sour Cream & Onion Deviled Eggs

What I Ate: Sugared Lime Watermelon

What I Ate’ is a series of posts for so-easy-this-doesn’t-need-a-recipe but I’m sharing with you for the idea or inspiration.

Summer produce is in prime and I was wanting to make this snack but a fourth of a seedless watermelon seems like a lot when it isn’t anyone’s fav fruit at home. We gravitate to berries, cantaloupe and nectarines. It seemed like a good choice to bring to a BBQ to feed others though!
The Three Bite Rule - Sugared Lime Watermelon

Sugared Lime Watermelon

Ingredients:

1/4 seedless watermelon, sliced
zest of 1 lime
2 teaspoons sugar
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt

Directions:

Slice the watermelon.
Zest the lime and mix in the sugar and salt.
The Three Bite Rule - Sugared Lime Watermelon
Sprinkle generously over each side of the sliced watermelon, serve, and enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Sugared Lime Watermelon
Not rocket science, but ohh-so-good. I love the lime and the salt with the watermelon. It was perfect for a warm day to eat outside – or any setting appropriate for watermelon juice to run down your arms!

I brought it ready to go, but next time I might sprinkle the sugar/salt/lime zest mix just before serving. It’d be cute cut onto skewers for a mobile snack!

 

Shrimp Cakes

I had another post queued up but was just so psyched by this one so it is cutting the line!  I loooove shrimp and went all out – even pan frying these! Gasp! I tend to get annoyed frying things since they require so much babysitting. These stayed together pretty well and were worth it. The shrimp cakes were full of such great corn & chive flavor! Plus if you’re growing chives, chances are you have tonssss – or sub parsley, or green onion, or whatever herb suits you.
The Three Bite Rule - Shrimp Cake

These shrimp cakes have a touch of lemon and some sweet corn and shallots provided freshness and crunch. My corn was leftover and I used some frozen shrimp since I like to have them on hand. I’d totally whip a bunch of these up for a group, or as mini appetizers, or they were great to just make 2 servings.

Shrimp Cakes (for 2 entree servings, or 4 appetizer portions)

Ingredients:

1 cup shrimp (shelled, deveined, defrosted, etc as necessary), about 1/4 pound
2 tablespoons mayo
2 tablespoons cornstarch
1 teaspoon minced garlic
1 tablespoon chives, minced
1/2 shallot, minced
~1 cup corn, off the cob
1-2 teaspoons lemon juice
Salt & pepper
1/3 cup vegetable oil

Directions:

Rough chop the shrimp into approximately thirds – smaller pieces but chunks.
Heat a heavy bottomed pan and oil to medium heat. (I used a small cast iron pan and added oil to be less than a quarter inch deep.)
Add shrimp, mayo, cornstarch, garlic, chives, shallot, corn, lemon juice, egg, and salt & pepper into a bowl and mix well.
The Three Bite Rule - Shrimp Cake
Test the oil temperature by dropping in a tiny bit of the mixture. If it sizzles, spoon in about 3 tablespoons for each shrimp cake (or your desired size). Pan fry for about 3 minutes on each side, or until golden brown. Remove from the oil to a paper-towel lined plate and sprinkle with salt.
Enjoy!
The Three Bite Rule - Shrimp Cake

I made these on a weekend afternoon and ate some of the more crumbly ones as lunch then the next night for dinner I just toasted these through and had them on salad for dinner. I looooved that these were full of shrimp and corn. I also really didn’t want them full of filler. I love me a good crabcake but wanted these to be different. The cornstarch makes them puffy and crunchy.

Make sure that oil is hot…otherwise they’ll be greasy and not crisp. I go with the small pan to just do a few at a time. Pop the done ones in an oven to stay warm if making for a crowd! I’d do little bites in advance for an app!