Baked Brown Rice Broccoli Cheddar Bites

So my son has discovered carbs.  He loves all thing pasta, crackers, and rice.  He loves them SO much that he will sometimes forget everything else on his plate and sweetly say "MOMMA I MORE RICE! PEEEAAAASEE!"  So in my ongoing mission to try to get him to eat his veggies, I started googling ways incorporate greens into his carbo-licious tastes.  Lo and behold, I discovered Rice Balls- aka Arincini.
This recipe makes scrumptious cheesy bites loaded with healthy broccoli,  encased in brown rice, and rolled in yummy crunchy bread crumbs!  The best is that he now can PICK UP his own rice and eat it, instead of me having to find tiny grains of rice all over everything!

Ingredients

1 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
1 Tablespoon dried oregano
1 tablespoon dried basil
1 teaspoon powdered garlic
1/2 teaspoon salt

1 1/2 cups steamed broccoli
1 egg
1/2 teaspoon chopped garlic
1 cup cooked brown rice
1/2 cup shredded cheddar cheese

Directions

1. Mix Panko, oregano, basil, garlic, and salt on a plate

2. Steam broccoli until fork tender

3. Place steamed broccoli, 1 egg, and chopped garlic in food processor.  Blend until smooth

4. Combine broccoli mixture, brown rice, and shredded cheddar cheese into a bowl.

Mix until well incorporated

5. Take spoonfuls of rice/broccoli mixture and form balls.  Roll into Panko mixture, and place on greased baking sheet

6. Cook at 375 degrees for 20 minutes. Finish on  broil for 2-3 minutes or until breadcrumbs are golden brown.

And there you have it.  Brown Rice and Broccoli that you can pick up and pop in your mouth! YUM!

Freeze the left overs and reheat in toaster oven or oven.