There’s a joke in my family about rice. Whenever my parents go overseas, they only seem to visit certain countries in a certain order. Allow me to explain. After university I went to live in Japan to teach English and my parents came to visit me. My mother rang me one day from their Tokyo hotel.
“We’re going back to Australia earlier than expected. Your father couldn’t find the rice that he likes here!”
I thought she was joking – after all, we were in Japan where there is plenty of rice. But it was true, my father didn’t want to try the koshihikari rice in Japan and insisted that he and my mother high tail it back home where he could have the rice that he liked. I am not kidding…
Thankfully he has gotten better after that trip. Now he can visit Europe with a minimum of fuss (although all European holidays must be buttressed at each end by a visit to Hong Kong). One thing about rice that I did find curious when I lived in Japan was that although they loved rice, the idea of rice pudding turned many off and that when I’d talk to my students about it their noses would wrinkle at the thought. Sure there is congee and rice cakes but English rice pudding wasn’t common at all.
I saw this recipe for rice pudding griddle cakes on Deana’s fantastic site Lost Past Remembered and wanted to make them straight away. The next day in fact when we were “busy” relaxing and enjoying the four day Easter weekend. For any Finnish people out there, these are like a hot cake version of the Finnish Karelian rice pie and although they don’t have any rye pastry, the filling is very similar to rice pies.
The flavour is subtle and comforting with a lift from the nutmeg and vanilla and the rice gives it a bit more body. Please don’t mistake my word subtle as a polite way of saying boring though – they are absolutely delicious. We always seem to have some sort of rice left over so this is for when you want to try something different than fried rice with your rice leftovers. Deana tried it with brown rice and declare it a success too. The original recipes comes from Miss Beecher’s Domestic Receipt-Book by Catharine Beecher and if you are interested in historical recipes, Deana’s site is a gold mine of fascinating recipes and their background stories.
And I think I could serve these to my father and he’d be happy 
So tell me Dear Reader, what is the one thing that you always take with you on holiday? And what did you get up on this Easter long weekend?
Rice Pudding Hot Cakes
Recipe adapted from LostPastRemembered
Makes approximately 24 or so 7cm pancakes or pikelets
- 1.5 cups boiled rice (white or brown)
- 1 cup milk
- 1.5 cups flour
- 2 tablespoons sugar
- 2 teaspoons salt
- 1 tablespoon breadcrumbs
- 1 teaspoon nutmeg
- 1.5 cups milk
- 2 eggs
- 1 teaspoon vanilla extract
- 1 teaspoon bi carbonate of soda dissolved in 1 tablespoon hot water
- butter or oil for frying
1. Soak the boiled rice in the milk overnight (you can use cold, hard rice too).
2. The next day, in a medium sized bowl, add the flour, sugar, salt, breadcrumbs and nutmeg. In a jug, whisk the milk, eggs and vanilla until combined through. Stir in the milky egg mixture into the flour mixture ensuring there are no lumps. Add the dissolved bicarbonate and water and then the soaked rice and milk. Stir together.
3. Heat a saucepan on medium heat and add butter or oil. I use egg rings because this is a slightly runny mixture but they’re not strictly necessary, Deana didn’t use them and hers looked great. Fry until the bottom is set and then turn over and quickly cook the other side. I actually loved these plain as they had a nice flavour to them but of course add jam or syrup.
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63 Comments | Add your own
I love pancakes!!!i will make them for our next family breakfast!!!
A very intriguing and original recipe! Those pancakes look just divine.
Cheers,
Rosa
What a lovely post, Lorraine! Happy Easter to you and your family!
I take my little pillow, it makes any trip so comfortable!
interesting recipe!
i find it strange that you dad does not want to try japanese rice! my whole family are envious of the japanese that they can have rice that resemble miniature pearls!
My husband adores rice pudding, so I’m sure he would love these(me too)! My daughter-in-law is from the Philippines and she and my son(and their two little boys) eat rice everyday:) Maybe they will like it too.
I remember that Miss Beecher cookbook. What a blast from the past. I think these hotcakes would have great texture and what a wonderful breakfast to enjoy over a long weekend.
I’m not much of a fan of rice pudding but when you put it into a pancake, how can I resist?!!
I don’t need to take anything with me when I travel but whenever I visit the states I always bring back an extra suitcase filled with “memory food.”
Happy Easter!
These sound fabulous – I adore rice pudding, so I bet I’d love these. We went out to breakfast for Easter Sunday.
Subtle but not boring – love it. These look DIVINE!! love me a vintage recipe. I made hot cross buns for the first time this weekend – major happy dance.
Heidi xo
Hi Lorraine, my parents will only buy rice from the Chinese grocery stores. They will buy a 25kg bag, cook some and if it’s a good batch go back and buy a couple more…..
They look delicious. I’m in orange for the long weekend. Leaving today. Thoroughly enjoyed my trip. I laughed hysterically at that comment “He cant find the rice he likes!”. Love it. What a classic. Happy Easter.
That is such a pretty bowl!!!
When I began reading this column I did wonder what was ‘drawing me’ so much
! Naturally I was brought up on Karelian rice pie: this to me is much more interesting and will be tried ’cause I could not live without rice 3-4 times/week, Japanese, Australian or otherwise. Thanks 
! What I always take overseas: definitely too many clothes to cover all the possible social obligations and weather variations!
I’m not sure why, maybe I’m too Asian? I’m not a big fan of rice puddings at all. Actually.. rice puddings are big in Japan right? Hmm.. it’s just me then
This bought back childhood memories for me, my mother used to make them for us as a treat with left-over rice, it is she told me a traditional recipe from her part of Austria. The only difference was some lemon zest in the mix and a sprinkle of lemon juice to serve.
This is a very interesting recipe. Here in Peru we eat rice a lot (ok, I don’t like, but talking in general, ok?). Rice pudding is very famous here, I think we inherit if from Spain, but I never ever see it in pancakes…!!!
That is some real comfort food! Never tried rice pudding to be honest but there is always a first!
Ooh these do look good. That’s an easy question… Vegemite! I don’t go overseas without a tube of it. It’s great if you get a bit of a stomach upset too. I’ve been up at the beach all weekend soaking up some sun before the wedding.
I admit that I am not much of a fan of rice pudding but if it were cooked like this with crispy edges, well I think I might love these!
Love any pancakes – especially ones like these that are a little different (how does your dad like them!!! is it his sort of rice
)Also love that plate they are on. Now must head off to deanna’s site because I love historic recipes
Oh! I hear “vintage”! This is amazing! I gotta try this out!
Your dad sounds like mine (although the problem was bread not rice
.
Lorraine, do you have any suggestions for a hotel or B&B near the Rocks for a family room of some sort(2 adults 2 children, even two rooms are fine as the kids are 13 and 11 so they can stay by themselves and that are very well behaved)at the beginning of July? We are staying 3 nights on our way to Alice Springs/Uluru and I am looking for somewhere nice (and ‘bloggable’??) even apartments, (although I checked but they seems to ask for too much for 3 nights only) that may have special offers. And if the Rocks is not good, anywhere central or near public transport
.
Only if you have time, of course
You can email me if you like
alessandra at clear dot net dot nz
ciao
Alessandra
Goodness me: I need someone to make these pancakes for me – I ache all over after all the Easter Triduum activities in the home parish! Plus, I have just three things in mind for long trips: a great book, a camera, and a hidden stash of chocolate!
Yum! Sounds wonderful. Happy Easter xox
Oh, and thanks a million for the ‘LostPastRemembered’ site: WOW is all I can come up with [my erstwhile grammar teacher would not approve of this sentence
!]!
Love the story about how your students turned up their noses at the idea of rice pudding–such cultural differences are always fascinating to me. I thrive on them. Love the story about your dad and his rice as well. Also fascinating. And this recipe looks comforting indeed.
Love anything that has rice in it so will make these.
Never go on holidays without my favourite sunglasses,never know when you may need to look mysterious!!!
Rice pudding pikelets! Love it! I always take my laptop these days. I’m not one for disconnecting on holiday
Wow had not heard of rice in pancakes before but I love the look of these. I have just got back from an Easter at Red Hill in Victoria – lots of chocolate, seafood and wine – perfect.
Definitely making it! We always have leftover rice and these sound so YUMMY.
. You are a great story teller. I bet you must be a fav among your nieces and nephews.
Always enjoy your short stories accompanying the posts
I think this recipe is an antique! Lol. Looks really tasty though.
I always take an extra suitcase on holiday for all the shopping I do
Can you believe my dad does not eat any other kind of sugar than the crystal one he have ….
I think it is all about taste and comfort may be right?
Anyways, this recipe sounds fabulous!!!
Vintage anything is way top on my like list and this has sure made it there..
Beautiful.
You said all the magical words in the title of your post.
I do like the idea of using cutters to ensure uniform sizes of pancakes. These sound fantastic L.
I think my hubby would be mad for these given his love of rice pudding and pancakes!
I always take him on holidays but the other thing I take is my trusty rucksack. It’s been everywhere in the world I’ve been (outside of Australia at least
sounds quite interesting indeed, not sure i could convince my daughter, she loves crepes. my easter weekend was packed but nice.
Wow never seen anything like these before. I love rice pudding and pancakes/griddle cakes so I’m sure these would be wonderful. Longing to try it now!
This is the first time I’ve heard of these!
im intrigued! I love rice pudding but never thought to make it into pancakes. I’m not a big rice eater as my own rice made at home always turns out wrong but might have to give this one a go
What lovely little pancakes, Lorraine. And the story of your dad is charming!
We never go on holiday without our music…it’s a must for us.
Maybe you know food because you inherited that discerning taste bud gene from your father. LOL. I love Deana’s site too and these would start any morning off happily.
I love rice pudding, so I’m definitely going to make these the next time I have leftover rice. I’m finally going home from 10 days of traveling and the one thing I always take is a blanket. I’m always freezing on airplanes. xoxo Mum
I love rice pudding and pancakes sound like a a great idea!
Hahaha that’s so funny Lorraine
you’re parents and my parents should really meet and i’m sure they’ll have fireworks!
My mum LOVES rice and has to have it every night and just like your dad…not just any rice…it has to be the rice that she’s use to along with the other dishes that she likes LOL
I remember when we went to Europe last time… my parents found it so hard to adjust not having Chinese food all the time lol that’s half of the reason why they’ve moved back to HK hahaha
I got back on Good Friday so have just been spending my time relaxing and catching up with friends and everything else ~
I just saw these on Deana’s blog and I thought they sounded fantastic! Your sweet adaptation looks wonderful, my dear!
My ipad has become my one thing that never gets left home when I travel. Addicted doesn’t even come close to describing how I feel about this thing!
I have to try your recipe. Rice pudding is not one of my favorites, but I love tapioca pudding, so maybe I just need to give rice pudding a whirl with my palate all grown up!
xxoo,
RMW
how interesting! i don’t know what you’ve put on top, but i like your proportions!
Oh they look nice…. great idea. Thank goodness it is only your mother that has to travel with your father!
Rice pudding and pancakes combined? Two of my favourite home-cooking desserts!
Rice pudding is a family favorite. This looks like such an interesting twist on the original recipe. I will have to give it a go. I hope you had a lovely Easter!
You have inspired me to give this recipe a go DESPITE it’s relationship to rice pudding.
I grew up on the stuff and loathe it now – mum still can’t help herself making some extra rice leftover to include a rice pud for afters.
I am so glad you liked these Lorraine! I had never heard of rice hotcakes before either till I read that 1913 NYT article. I just had to make them and they were awfully good. I admit to snacking on the leftovers as I was taking the shot.
Evidently they were popular for nearly 100 years and then dropped off the map… go figure. Who forgets a great way to get rid of extra rice? More or less sugar makes them good for sweet or savory dishes. Your pictures are fabulous!
Love the story about your dad! And the pancakes too!
I want to try this recipe when I get back! Very interesting how you make these pancakes!
Love! Rice pudding reminds me of my grandmother. What a great idea
I have saved your recipe, I couldnt help myself. XD
These rice pudding cakes look like the best way to eat rice pudding
I’m not a big fan of rice pudding in general because it tends to get a little gummy, but I would imagine these cakes would have a nice bit of crispiness… Thanks for the introduction to Deana’s blog – I’m off to check it out next. And I spent Easter with family and traveling across the country 
And falling far behind in blog reading…
OH these sound delightful, and the nutmeg sould be a nice lift to the flavour too. I will certainly be making them as we always have leftover rice in our fridge!
I always take heaps of supplies when we travel, gluten and lactose free treats are not always easy to come by. I always come home with more treats then I set out with though, as I like to explore local treasures
Ha! That rice story was too funny! I love this recipe! I’m obsessed with vintage recipes. They appeal to the same part of my brain that can’t get enough of genealogy shows.
Love love love!!! they look aweosme
THESE WERE YUMMY. just a question though? is the mix meant to be super runny? As when i cooked them in the egg rings, they took along time to cook and were difficult to flip without spilling.
The kids loved them, even though they first said ” yuck, rice in pancakes!”
Hi Jacqui- I’m glad that everyone liked them!! And you’re right, the mix is quite runny so it’s a little difficult to flip at first
Love vintage recipes and cannot get enough of stories of both your families…
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