Recipe: Mission Fig Rice Cakes

A while back, I wrote about making rice cakes for long cycling events. I’m trying again, but this time with dried fruit. I like these better than thought I might. 😋

Ingredients

• 3 portions of sushi rice

• 1/2 cup of chopped mission figs

• 1 cup sugar

Instructions

Mix the sugar with enough water to make a slurry. Warm it up a little in the microwave. Chop the figs and add them to the mixture. Let them get sweet and squishy while the rice cooks in the machine.

When the rice is done, add the sugary figs and mix well. Pour into a lined casserole dish — parchment is probably better than wax paper if the mix is still hot. Let it cool for a while, then wrap it up with plastic and stick the brick in the fridge.

The next day, slice the rice cakes into servings. Attempt to wrap with wax paper and store. I’m not good at the wrapping part.

On ride day, stick a couple rice cakes in a plastic sandwich bag before carrying in a jersey pocket so they don’t make a mess.

Recipe: Rice Cakes

There are a couple of videos on GCN showing rice cakes. I’ve made some modifications to create some interesting cycling food. I think the chia seeds give the cakes some interesting texture — so they’re not just bars of mush. Depending on whether the coconut cream is sweetened, it may be necessary to add more sugar. I like using corn syrup because it mixes nicely and I did well in high school chemistry class.

Ingredients

• 300 g sushi rice

• 600 g water

• 50 g chia seed

• 100 g coconut cream

• 100 g corn syrup

• 1.5 ml vanilla extract

Instructions

Throw all the ingredients into the rice cooker and run on the mode for sushi or porridge. After cooking, run the spoon through it to mix again and let it cool down a little. Shovel it into a zip-top bag and flatten it to a consistent thickness. Place it in the fridge for a couple hours. Then slice and wrap. I like the aluminum foil and wax paper packaging. Keep the bars in the fridge; they’ll be good for at least a week, maybe more.

Recipe: Green Lentils in the Instant Pot

I scrambled for enough ingredients in the kitchen for some Instant Pot lentils. I experimented using fresh tomatoes instead of canned stuff, because I was all out. I might suggest some lime juice or vinegar to brighten it up. Still, it’s a pretty tasty lunch on a cloudy day.

Ingredients

• 1 med. yellow onion

• 1/2 tbsp crushed garlic from a jar

• 2 tsp each of turmeric, cumin, garam masala

• 1 tsp salt and cayenne pepper

• 1 cup sliced carrots

• 2 med. chopped tomatoes

• 1 large cubed yellow potato

• 2 cups green lentils

• 2 cups chicken broth

• 2 cups water

• 2 cups baby kale

• Feta crumbles for presentation

Preparation

Sauté the onions and garlic. Add the spices. Add the carrots, tomatoes, and potatoes. Cook for a few minutes, then add the lentils and liquids. Switch to pressure cooking mode for 15 minutes. After the pressure has released, stir in the kale. Serve after relaxing on warming mode for an hour, or whatever.