Sausage Rice Balls

1 lb. lean sausage, browned
2 cups cooked rice
1/2 cup shredded cheese
flour
buttermilk
bread crumbs
cooking oil
white gravy (optional)

Mix cooked sausage, rice and cheese. Form into golf ball size balls. Roll in flour, then buttermilk, then bread crumbs. Slowly place them in hot oil and cook until outside is brown and crispy. Serve as is or with gravy.

Changes - You can use hot sausage, the rice will cool it down some. You can use long grain/wild rice for added flavors. This can be made with well seasoned turkey or chicken sausage. When I worked these up I made about half of them coated with the flour/buttermilk/crumb crust and the other half with no battering. Both are great. Those battered had a nice crispy crust whereas the ones without had just a slight crisp on the outside. These are perfect for breakfast but are good any time.