ARANCINI

Risotto is just the best isn't it? It's delicious and creamy and versatile and the best thing ever when you don't know what to cook one evening. The downside of it is, it only tastes nice when fresh. The next day it turns into gloopy stodge. Well and that's where these babies come in. Arancini...(little oranges) these crispy rice balls originate from Sicily and are traditionally filled with ragú, tomato sauce, mozzarella or peas. The perfect snack or light dinner option.

We filled our arancini with a Gorgonzola dolce, rolled in golden breadcrumbs and served alongside a mixed salad. I am generally not a big fan of fried food and traditionally arancini are deep fried. We went for the compromise option. We first shallow fried for golden crispiness and then oven baked to finish off. This was a delicious dinner option, vegetarian and no leftovers. Result!

What's your favourite arancini filling?

Love,


MAKES 8 (of course this depends on the amount of risotto you've got left over)
PREPARATION 10mins
COOKS 20mins

INGREDIENTS

• Leftover risotto (you can use this or this recipe)
• filling of your choice: bolognese, mozarella, tomatoes, gorgonzola...
• breadcrumbs
• 1 egg, beaten
• olive oil

PREPARATION METHOD

1. Pre-heat the oven to 190˚C. 
2. Heat some olive oil in a large frying pan.
3. Lightly wet your hands and scoop up some of the leftover risotto rice into your hand. Flatten until it covers the palm of your hand. 
4. Place a cube of cheese or a teaspoon of sauce filling in the centre of the rice disc. Close your hand and start gently rolling the rice until it forms the shape of a ball, encasing your filling (be careful not to squeeze it to hard when using a sauce filling as it may squidge out).
5. Dip in the beaten egg, then roll in the breadcrumbs. 
6. Fry the risotto balls for about 3 minutes on each side until golden brown. I flattened them a little (they looked a bit like fishcakes) so they would fry more evenly.
7. Place on some kitchen roll to soak up any oil. 
8. Once all the arancini have been fried, place on a baking tray and bake in the pre-heated oven for 10-15 minutes or until evenly golden and warmed through.

Enjoy with a side salad tossed in a simple dressing of lemon and olive oil. Arancini are even better eaten the next day, at room temperature using your hands, like proper street-food.