Arancini

I was in Edmonton recently and was fortunate enough to have dinner at Corso 32. The food was excellent, very nicely cooked. The braised dishes we tried were nicely done, very tender and tasty. One of the appetizers we shared was Arancini. Great little breaded deep fried balls of risotto. Nice and crisp on the outside and really light, gooey and tasty  on the inside. So, of course, when I came home, I had to try to duplicate them. I used my leftover mushroom risotto, stuffing it with a little ball of goat cheese giving them a light breadcrumb coating. I didn’t quite get the fluffy texture of the Corso rice balls but they were very tasty! Next time I’ll match them!

Mushroom Arancini

    1 tablespoon olive oil

    ¼ cup onion, finely chopped

    1 clove garlic, minced

    1 cup Arborio rice

    1/2 cup dry white wine

    2 1/2 cups boiling vegetable stock

    ½ oz dried mushrooms

    salt and pepper to taste

    1/2 cup finely grated Parmesan cheese

    ¼ cup celery leaves, chopped fine

    2 tsp fresh thyme leaves

Breading

    1 egg

    1 tablespoon milk

    4 ounces goat cheese,

    1/2 cup all-purpose flour

    1 cup dry bread crumbs

    vegetable oil for deep frying

1. Place the dried mushrooms in a small bowl and pour enough boiling water over them to cover. Let them stand until soft. Drain the liquid from the mushrooms and set aside. Chop the mushrooms into small pieces.
2. 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.
3. Add enough hot vegetable stock to the reserved mushroom liquid to make 2 ½ cups. Add the stock to the rice 1/3 cup at a time, stirring and cooking until the liquid has evaporated before adding more. (Keep the stock hot on medium heat while cooking the rice)
4. Add the chopped, dried mushrooms when half of the stock has been added to the rice.
5. When the vegetable stock has all been added, and the liquid has evaporated, the rice should soft but not mushy. Remove from the heat, and stir in the Parmesan cheese, celery leaves and thyme. Taste the risotto and season with salt and pepper if needed. Transfer the risotto to a bowl, and allow to cool slightly, or cool overnight.
6. In a small bowl, whisk together the egg and milk with a fork. Roll about 2 tablespoons of the risotto into a ball. Press a piece of goat cheese into the center, and roll to enclose. Coat lightly with flour, dip into the milk mixture, then roll in bread crumbs to coat.
7. Heat oil for frying in a deep-fryer or large deep saucepan to 350 degrees F. 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.

Note: You can also make this with fresh mushrooms. Use about 2 – 3 ounces fresh mushrooms, chopping them fine and sautéing them with the onions and garlic.