Cheesy Rice and Ground Beef Coquettes

Heat a sauté pan over medium heat, and add the grapeseed oil. Cook the ground beef, breaking it up with a spoon, until no longer pink.

Add the mushrooms, and continue to cook until softened and any moisture has evaporated, 4 to 5 minutes. If there’s a lot of excess fat in the pan, drain it off.

Stir in the chili powder, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside to cool.

Preheat the oven to 200°.

Heat the oil in a deep, heavy pot until it reaches 365° on a deep fry thermometer, and have ready a cooling rack set over a sheet tray.

In a large bowl, measure together the rice, cheese, herbs, breadcrumbs, flour, eggs, salt and pepper. Add the cooled ground beef mixture.

Using your hands, combine all of the ingredients until well mixed. You should be able to easily compact the mixture to form a ball, but if it’s too loose, add 2 additional tablespoons of flour.

Using your hands, form the mixture into slightly-larger-than-golf-ball size balls, making sure you compact the mixture.

Roll the balls in either flour, tapping off any excess, or breadcrumbs.

Once the oil is hot, carefully lower 6 to 8 croquettes at a time into the pot, and fry until golden brown and crisp, about 5 minutes.

Using a slotted spoon, transfer the croquettes to the cooling rack set over the sheet tray, and place in the oven to keep warm. Continue frying.

Transfer the croquettes to a platter, and serve with your favorite marinara sauce.