VERONICA HINKE
author • speaker • journalist • coach
Recipes & Food Styling
Spicy Sardine Cakes with Southwest Tomato Rice

Spicy Sardine Cakes with Southwest Tomato Rice
After life-long primary lymphedema and triple negative breast cancer, I love the incredible nutritional and anti-inflammatory benefits of sardines. The little guys are loaded with selenium and Vitamin D, which I found out I was low on shortly after my breast cancer diagnosis.
But, I’m not a fan of the taste or texture of the hearty little fish. I’ve tried all kinds of ways to love them. I doctored up these sardines with lots of spice, lemon and some of my favorite flavors like ground mustard, ginger, onion, garlic, and more. I included red pepper, cilantro and other ingredients with lots of color; and followed a Southwest theme with a side of Spanish rice with tomatoes.
Mission accomplished: Delicious! Here is how I made these:
Spicy Sardine Cakes with Southwest Tomato Rice
Makes 4-6 servings
18 ounces of canned, boneless sardines in oil, rinsed well in cold water, (4 4.5-ounce cans)
1 cup panko bread crumbs
1 cup mayonnaise
Juice of 2 fresh lemons
2 tablespoons paprika
2 large eggs
1 large shallot, diced
1 red bell pepper, diced
2 garlic cloves, minced
1 tablespoon ground mustard
1 teaspoon ground ginger
1 teaspoon garlic powder
1 teaspoon freshly ground multi-colored peppercorns
1/2 teaspoon pink Himalayan sea salt
4 cups extra virgin olive oil
In a large mixing bowl, combine all of the ingredients, and mix everything together thoroughly with your hands.
In a frying pan over medium heat, heat the olive oil.
Separate the sardine mixture into 10 balls of equal size. Using the palm of your hands, press each ball into a cake patty size.
Place the sardine cake patties in the oil. Cook on each side until they become golden brown, about 8-10 minutes on each side.
Place the sardine cake patties on papertowels to drain the oil.


