From the menu of Shorty’s Wood Fired Pizza

The risotto cakes are cooked to order and baked in the restaurant’s wood-fired pizza oven. Lacking a pizza oven at home, you can pan-fry these cakes.

Shorty’s Black Bean-Risotto Cakes

3 cups chicken stock, more if needed, divided

4 tablespoons unsalted butter

1/4 cup diced onion

8 ounces Arborio rice

1/2 cup white wine

1/2 teaspoon black pepper

1 bay leaf

1/4 cup canned black beans, drained but not rinsed

Salt

1/2 cup panko

2 tablespoons canola oil

In a large saucepan, bring chicken stock to a boil. Reduce heat and let simmer. Keep warm.

In a large saucepan, melt butter over medium heat. Add onion and saute until translucent, about 5 minutes. Add rice and saute 2 minutes. Add wine, pepper and bay leaf and cook until liquid is almost gone. Add 1 cup warm chicken stock and cook until liquid is almost gone. Repeat with remaining chicken stock until rice is tender. You may not need all the chicken stock, or you may need a little more.

When rice is done, remove mixture from heat, remove bay leaf and add black beans. Stir well to combine. Taste for seasoning.

Lightly grease a rimmed baking sheet. Pour rice onto prepared baking sheet and spread to 1-inch thick. Chill.

When ready to serve, pour panko into a pie plate. Using a 2-inch biscuit cutter, cut chilled rice mixture into 2-inch patties and coat all sides with panko. Set patties aside. Discard remaining panko.

In a large skillet over medium-high heat, heat canola oil. Saute cakes until golden brown on each side, about 2 minutes per side. Do not crowd pan. Move browned patties to a paper towel-lined plate and continue with remaining patties. Serve hot. Makes: 14

Per serving of 2 patties: 129 calories (percent of calories from fat, 40), 4 grams protein, 15 grams carbohydrates, trace fiber, 6 grams fat (2 grams saturated), 9 milligrams cholesterol, 342 milligrams sodium.