I do this to achieve something similar. (think i first came across it here – http://www.johnyerhot.com/2008/01/10/rails-using-helpers-in-you-controller/)

class Helper
include Singleton
include ActionView::Helpers::UrlHelper
end

class ApplicationController < ActionController::Base
def helpers
Helper.instance
end
end

class MyController < ApplicationController
def my_action
@person = Person.find(params[:id])
render :text => helpers.link_to(@person.full_name, person_path(@person))
end
end

render :inline => "<%= link_to(@person.full_name, person_path(@person)) %>"