I have to admit I do have a minor addiction to Arancini balls. This Italian rice treat is very easy, and tasty, and as reading some other blogs, looks like it’s slowly takeing over the world:) Also, it can be the solution for the left over risotto you might have in your fridge. With adding some cheese and seasoning, rolling it into bread crumbs, it can be a popular snack on kids parties or for a nice wine tasting night with your friends. Rice has never tasted so nice!:)
I came up with the pesto-arancini idea,, for a recipe contest about a month ago. To be honest I don’t know why I never ended up sending this recipe. I was afraid it will look too simple for the judges. Now I know i was wrong, but anyway, its at least something new in my book. For it you can use fresh pesto, or ones from the supermarket. While cooking, I used home-made basil-olive oil for some extra basil kick. Instead of mozzarella, you can use any easily melting cheese, for a richer taste even gorgonzola would be a nice try. The arancini is great for experimenting. The only thing you need to be care of is, make sure your rice mix isn’t too runny, otherwise the breadcrumbs wont hold them together. Enjoy!
Ingredients
risotto rice base
Basil oil
Green pesto
egg yolks (depending on the quantity, for about 10-15 balls 2 is usually enough)
mozzarella cheese
Breadcrumbs
Oil for cooking
While still warm mix the pesto, cheese, basil oil with the rice base and set aside to cool. When semi warm add the egg yolks watch out you don’t want to end up with scrambled eggs in your arancini. When a bit cook, sticky and easy to form. Form small balls from the mix. Roll them in breadcrumbs, and deep fry in hot oil! Enjoy!
