Arincini di Riso Ushering in the New Year

This is the requisite “welcome back to reality” post.  Being that it’s the first work day after the long holiday season.  It seems difficult to get my head together today.  Probably due to the lack of coffee in my system since I’m now on day 3 of my self-imposed detox.  It doesn’t help that I’m writing this post about the yummy Arancini we had on New Year’s Eve and that Mr. Belly has not joined in on the healthy start to the New Year.  His idea of starting the new year off healthy is having a healthy sized dinner.  So he gets mac and cheese for his dinner tonight.  But back to these lovely little Arancini.

I’ve never made these before, but I had seen them months ago and had kept rolling a recipe for them around (no pun intended) in my head.  I knew at some point I wanted to make these for some occasion.  The occasion happened to be New Year’s Eve with Mr. Belly and our annual Wii battle.  Yes, that’s an occasion at our house.  If I don’t save my good wines for super special over the top occasions, why should I wait to make the Arancini for some special over the top occasion?  If that was the case, We’d never drink any of our wines.  So if it’s a good enough rule for the vino…it’s good enough for the food.

Traditionally, Arancini are a Sicilian treat made with rice, peas, meat and cheese, but they are also made with leftover risotto.  I get it.  They look fussy and time consuming.  Trust me…fussy they’re not, easy it is, and the only time consuming part is that you have to make up the rice mixture in advance and let it cool.  You could use pretty much any kind of rice you want, except instant rice.  I had basmati rice around, so that’s what I used and it came out great.  This whole recipe is pretty tough to mess up.  Your reward is a little golden ball of warm rice flavored with cheese and spices with a gooey cheesy center and a crunchy outer coating.

Relationship Advice

An occasion is as special or as mundane as you make it.  A quiet evening at home can be just as special as eating at a 5 star restaurant.  Why keep saving that bottle of wine for a “special occasion?”  How often do you actually get to spend a truly quiet night at home doing what you want…not what you have to do?  Celebrate that!

Makes 30 2″ Arancini

Ingredients

• 1 Tablespoon Olive Oil
• 1 1/2 Cups Basmati Rice
• 3 Cups Chicken Broth
• 3/4 Cups White Wine
• 2 Eggs
• 1 Cup Shredded Parmesan Cheese
• 1/4 Teaspoon Dried Thyme
• Zest of 1 Lemon
• Kosher Salt
• Fresh Ground Black Pepper
• Canola Oil
• 30 1/2″ cubes of Emmetaler Cheese (or Swiss, Mozzarella, Gruyere)*
• 1/4 Cup Milk
• Panko Bread Crumbs**

Directions

Put olive oil in a medium size saucepan over medium high heat.  Once oil is hot add the rice.  Stir rice to coat with oil and lightly toast.

Add chicken broth and white wine to rice in 1/2 cup increments and stir continuously.  As each amount of liquid is absorbed, add the next 1/2 cup of liquid until all of the liquid is absorbed and rice is creamy.  The rice should be starchy and creamy, NOT fluffy and separate.

Remove rice from heat stir in Parmesan, thyme, lemon zest and add salt and pepper to taste.

Let rice cool at least 2 hours.  Preferably overnight in the refrigerator.

Thoroughly mix 1 egg into cooled rice mixture.

Spoon 2 tablespoons of rice mixture into your hand (using an ice cream scoop makes this job much easier), start to form the rice into a ball.  In the center of the mixture, add in the cube of Emmentaler.  Continue to form the rice ball around the cheese.  Once the ball is formed, set it onto a baking sheet and continue doing this until all of the mixture is used up.

Set up 2 bowls.  In one bowl, beat 1 egg and the milk.  In the other bowl, add the panko bread crumbs.

In a deep pot or heavy skillet pour canola oil to 1″-2″ deep and heat to 350 degrees Farenheit.  If you don’t have a thermometer, heat the oil until it is hot but not smoking.  The oil should sizzle when a bit of the rice is dropped into it.  (Using a thermometer is the best way to ensure that your fried foods come out perfectly browned and not greasy.)

While your oil is heating, dredge the rice balls in the egg and milk mixture, then roll in panko bread crumbs.  After coating, set back onto baking sheet.

Once oil has reached 350 degrees, add 3-4 rice balls to the oil (do not overload the pan as the oil temperature will drop too low and your food will take a long time to cook and will get greasy).  Cook until golden on one side (approximately 2-3 minutes) then turn the Arancini over to cook the other side.  The Arancini should be a rich orange/golden color.  Once done cooking, remove to drain on paper towels.

If you want to keep all of your Arancini warm for serving, you can put these in a 300 degree oven (on a baking sheet) as you finish them.

* You can also use small meatballs or vegetables for the centers.

** If you don’t have Panko bread crumbs, you can use regular bread crumbs or ground crackers.  Or to make this gluten free, you can use chickpea flour.

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3. Colorful Carrots and Dukkah Oh My
4. Least Sexy Post of the Year – Easy Fondant
5. Crunchy Roasted Chickpeas

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