Cycling rice cakes aren't anything like those crunchy, chip-like flavoured snack food ones in the bag. These are high energy squares of cooked rice with added flavourings, like raisins, apple, and cinnamon. I learned about them from watching GCN videos (the Global Cycling Network) and they are a favourite food of pro racers while on the bike. They can be kept in a jersey pocket while riding, are quick to eat (barely need chewing), and pack easy to digest nutrition. The rice cakes sounded good and since they seem to be a universally eaten cycling food, I thought I'd give the GCN recipe a try.
Basically, the rice cakes are cooked short grain rice, such as arborio, combined with flavours and then cooled in a pan, chilled, and cut into portable squares. There is a lot of energy and calories going into the rice from brown sugar, apple juice, and dried fruit but that burst of energy is what long ride cyclists and racers require. I used my Instant Pot to cook the rice (really it's a sweet risotto) and then I mixed in the raisins, dried apples, cinnamon and brown sugar. We tasted it warm straight from the pot and it was delicious!!! If you like rice pudding, it had a very similar flavour.
The cooked mixture is spread into a baking sheet and cooled before it's chilled overnight in the fridge. In the morning, I cut the solidified rice into squares and wrapped them individually. Cooked rice needs to be handled carefully in terms of food safety and should be kept refrigerated or frozen, and not left a room temperature longer than a couple hours. The rice cakes tasted a lot less sweet once they are cold (which is another reason why there is so much sugar in the recipe), but were quite good. However, I did not enjoy the squares as much once they had been frozen and then thawed. The texture was much more dry and the flavour much more subtle. They weren't horrible or anything, just not as good, but they still served their nutritional purpose and eased hunger pangs after a ride. Since we are not racing or in the saddle for hours and hours, I cut the squares into very small portions and we only have the rice cakes occasionally.
Speaking of GCN, I am such a GCN fan that I ordered a bunch of gear from their on-line store. I bought a new hoodie (so fluffy and cozy!), a beautiful cycling jersey made in Italy, a geeky fan GCN water bottle (which is the exact CamelBak Podium model I currently use but red with the logo), and a phone pouch. Everything was awesome and I was also delighted to get a postcard featuring the presenters and a couple of stickers. They are now in my scrapbook album! :)
