Arancini With Sage Recipes

ARANCINI WITH SAGE

Steps:

• Heat 2 tablespoons butter in a medium saucepan over medium heat. Add shallots; cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 4 minutes. Add rice and cook, stirring, until toasted, about 1 minute. Add wine and cook, stirring, until absorbed.
• Gradually add broth 1 cup at a time, stirring, until rice is just tender, 20 to 25 minutes. (You may not need to use all of broth.) Remove from heat and stir in remaining 2 tablespoons butter and Parmesan. Add sage; season with coarse salt and pepper. Spread risotto in a 9-by-13-inch baking dish. Let cool completely.
• Form risotto into 1 1/2-inch balls. Insert a cube of Taleggio in center of each. Place flour, eggs, and panko in three shallow dishes; lightly beat eggs. Dredge each ball with flour, then dip in eggs and coat in panko. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet.
• Heat 2 inches oil to 360 degrees in a heavy pot over medium-high heat. Fry balls in batches, turning once, until golden brown, about 3 minutes a batch. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Sprinkle with flaky salt.
• Fry small sage leaves in oil until crisp and bright green, about 30 seconds. Top risotto balls with fried sage and serve.

SAUSAGE AND PARMESAN ARANCINI

Steps:

• In a large straight-sided pan, heat the olive oil with the sausage over medium heat. Brown the sausage, breaking it up into smaller pieces as it cooks, until no longer pink, 8 to 10 minutes. Add the onions and turn the heat down to medium-low. Cook until the onions are fully softened, about 8 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.
• Bring the chicken stock to a simmer in a saucepan and keep warm on low heat. Add the rice to the onions and increase the heat to medium. Toast the rice, stirring often, until fragrant, 1 to 2 minutes. Add the white wine and reduce until almost dry. Reduce the heat to medium, then add 6 ounces of hot stock at a time, stirring the risotto throughout. When the liquid evaporates, add more stock. Continue in this manner until the rice is al dente, then cook out most of the liquid until thick. Turn off the heat and add the Parmesan, chives and butter. Spread the mixture on a sheet tray lined with parchment to cool completely in the refrigerator, 3 to 4 hours, or up to overnight.
• Roll the risotto into 1-ounce balls, to make about 35 in total.
• Preheat several inches vegetable oil in a pot or fryer to 350 degrees F.
• Roll the balls in the flour, followed by the egg, then the panko. Fry the arancini in batches until golden brown, 3 to 4 minutes. Transfer the arancini to a paper towel-lined plate to drain any excess oil. Place the arancini on a platter and garnish with Pecorino-Romano and chives and serve with the spicy marinara and/or the Chimichurri, if desired.
• Preheat a grill to medium-high heat. Lightly dress the scallions with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Grill, flipping as needed, until charred and wilted, about 8 minutes. Chop the scallions really well and add to a bowl with the remaining olive oil. Fold in the sherry vinegar, chives, parsley, shallots and garlic.

ARANCINI AL RAGU

Steps:

• For the rice: In a medium saucepot over high heat, add the beef stock, butter, salt and saffron. When the stock reaches a boil, add the rice and stir it a bit to prevent sticking. Let it come to a rolling boil and lower the heat a bit to medium. Stir the rice once in a while, you want the rice to absorb all of the liquid; it should take 15 to 20 minutes. Taste the rice; it should be slightly al dente but creamy. Remove the pot from the heat, add the cheeses and stir well. Pour the rice onto a baking sheet and spread into a thin layer. Cover with plastic wrap and let cool, preferably overnight in the fridge.
• For the ragu: Mix the ground beef and pork together with your hands and add salt and pepper generously. Set aside.
• In a medium saucepot over medium low heat, saute the pancetta with the olive oil until the fat is melted. Add the onions and let cook until soft, about 5 minutes. Add the carrot and celery along with the bay leaf and cook until soft, 7 to 10 minutes.
• Add the ground meat and turn the heat to high. Keep mixing with a wooden spoon until the meat is well done and browned. Add the white wine and stir until it is evaporated. Add the tomato puree and tomato paste in water. Bring to a boil, and then lower the heat to medium, stirring occasionally. There will be some fat that comes to the top. Skim it off with a ladle but you want to leave some for the flavor. Let cook for about 1 1/2 hours.
• About 5 minutes before the ragu is done, saute the peas in a touch of butter with a pinch of salt and add to the ragu. Put the ragu in a bowl and set aside to cool. You can leave it overnight covered in the fridge.
• For the filling and assembly: Portion out cooled rice into identical portions. We weigh ours to 1.6 ounces. Take one portion and form it into a semi-circle in the palm of your hand, making a cup-like shape to place the ragu and mozzarella into. Scoop a generous amount of ragu, about 2 teaspoons, into the half ball and then a few cubes of mozzarella. Take another portion of rice and flatten it into a disk shape. Place that disk over the half ball to enclose the ragu and cheese in the center. Have a bowl of warm water nearby to dip your hands into' it'll make the process easier and less sticky. Roll the ball around to enclose all ingredients in the center and shape into a perfectly round ball. Repeat with the remaining ingredients.
• For the batter and breading: Place the flour and 1 1/2 cups cold water into a bowl and add a pinch of salt. Mix with a whisk until smooth and about the consistency of eggnog. Add the breadcrumbs to a large bowl or baking dish. Roll each rice ball in the batter and shake off excess batter. Then roll each ball in the breadcrumbs. Repeat with all the balls.
• Use a heavy duty pot with enough canola oil to submerge the balls in. Make sure the oil isn't near the top of the pot because it will overflow when you drop your balls in. Bring the oil to 350 degrees F, using a high temp thermometer if you have one. If not you can throw a small piece of white bread in to test; it should brown quickly and float when the oil is hot enough.
• Use a slotted spoon or wire basket to lower your balls into the hot oil. Don't overcrowd the balls - maybe 2 or 3 at a time. Fry in batches until they are golden like arancini ("little oranges"), about 5 minutes. Remove and place on paper towels to drain. Eat hot.

ARANCINI

Steps:

• Heat the olive oil in a large saucepan over medium heat. Add onion and garlic, and cook, stirring until onion is soft but not browned. Pour in the rice, and cook stirring for 2 minutes, then stir in the wine, and continue cooking and stirring until the liquid has evaporated. Add hot chicken stock to the rice 1/3 cup at a time, stirring and cooking until the liquid has evaporated before adding more.
• When the chicken stock has all been added, and the liquid has evaporated, stir in the peas and ham. Season with salt and pepper. Remove from the heat, and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Transfer the risotto to a bowl, and allow to cool slightly.
• Stir the beaten egg into the risotto. In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining egg and milk with a fork. For each ball, roll 2 tablespoons of the risotto into a ball. Press a piece of the mozzarella cheese into the center, and roll to enclose. Coat lightly with flour, dip into the milk mixture, then roll in bread crumbs to coat.
• Heat oil for frying in a deep-fryer or large deep saucepan to 350 degrees F (175 degrees C). Fry the balls in small batches until evenly golden, turning as needed. Drain on paper towels. Keep warm in a low oven while the rest are frying.

ARANCINI BALLS

Steps:

• Heat the oil and butter in a saucepan until foamy. Add the onion and a pinch of salt and fry gently over a low heat for 15 mins, or until softened and translucent. Add the garlic and cook for another min. Stir in the rice and cook for a further min, then pour in the wine. Bring to the boil and cook until the liquid is reduced by half. Pour in half the stock and simmer, stirring continuously, until most of the liquid is absorbed. Add the remaining stock a ladleful at a time as the rice absorbs the liquid, stirring, until the rice is cooked through (this should take about 20-25 mins). Stir in the parmesan and lemon and season to taste. Spread the risotto out into a lipped tray and leave to cool to room temperature.
• Scoop the cooled risotto into 18 equal portions - they should be slightly larger than a golf ball. Flatten a risotto ball in your hand and put a piece of the mozzarella in the centre, then enclose the cheese in the rice and roll it into a ball. Repeat with the remaining risotto balls.
• Put the flour, eggs and breadcrumbs into three separate shallow bowls. Dip each prepared risotto ball into the flour, followed by the eggs and finally, the breadcrumbs. Transfer to a tray and set aside.
• Half-fill a large, heavy-based saucepan with vegetable oil and heat over medium-low until it reads 170C on a cooking thermometer or until a piece of bread turns golden brown in the oil within 45 seconds. Lower the risotto balls into the oil in batches and cook for 8-10 mins, or until golden brown and melted in the centre. Set aside on a tray lined with a clean kitchen towel.
• Eat the arancini warm, or serve with a basic tomato sauce for dipping.

ARANCINI WITH MARINARA SAUCE

Steps:

• Place rice and 6 cups of water in a large saucepan; bring to a boil. Reduce heat to a medium-low and cook, covered, stirring often, until water is completely absorbed, 20 to 25 minutes. Transfer to a large bowl; set aside until completely cooled.
• Meanwhile, in a small skillet heat olive oil over medium-high heat. Add garlic and cook, stirring, until golden and fragrant, about 2 minutes. Remove from heat; set aside.
• Stir 3 eggs, one at a time, into cooled rice. Add Parmesan, parsley, and reserved cooked garlic; stir to combine. Season with salt and pepper.
• Fill a large bowl with water. Dip your hands into the water and then form rice mixture into a 2 1/2-inch ball. Transfer to a parchment-lined baking sheet. Repeat process until all of the rice has been used. Using 2 fingers, make an indentation in each ball. Fill each ball with 1 piece of mozzarella cheese and 1 piece of capicolla or proscuitto. Press together to enclose. If necessary, add more rice mixture to cover.
• Beat remaining 2 eggs in a medium bowl. Place breadcrumbs in a shallow dish. Dip each rice ball first in egg mixture, and then in breadcrumbs to coat. Gently remold rice balls if they begin to loose their round shape. Return to parchment paper-lined baking sheet; set aside.
• Heat 5 inches of oil in a large Dutch-oven until it reaches 350 degrees on a deep-fry thermometer. Using a slotted spoon, gently lower one rice ball at a time into hot oil, working in batches if necessary. Cook rice balls, turning, until brown and crispy on all sides, 2 to 3 minutes. Transfer to a paper towel-lined plate. Serve immediately with marinara sauce.