Rice Balls

Submitted by Suzanne Bastarache

Ingredients

1 cup of rice

1/8-1/4 cup of Italian cheese

1/4 lb of mozzarella

2 eggs

1 Onion, chopped

1/2 cup Peas

1lb Ground meat, cooked

Breadcrumbs

Tomato sauce or paste

From Chef Suzanne: This recipe for rice balls (also known as arancini) is one of my favorite Sicilian family recipes. I know it as my mother's recipe, though I imagine that, originally, it was my grandmother's. Some people make these balls small for appetizers. We make them a little larger and serve as a side dish.

Instructions

Bring 2 cups of water to a boil.

Add 1 cup of rice. Cover and cook for 20 minutes.

Mix rice with some grated Italian cheese (about 1/8 - 1/4 cup), finely cut mozzarella (about 1/4 lb) and two egg yolks. Save the whites for later.

Roll into desired ball size (could be a racquet ball, could be a baseball) and put a little of the following in the middle (center) of the ball.

Sautee some chopped onions; add peas and ground meat.

Heat until meat is browned; drain and add a little tomato sauce or paste.

Cut up small chunks of mozzarella.

Roll balls in egg whites and then in breadcrumbs.

Deep fry and drain on paper towel or brown bag. Can be re-heated in microwave.