Sicilian Rice Ball Casserole

My friend Sara from Yeah, Like I Have Time For This was hinting around asking someone to make this for her.  Since I've had the itch to make arancini or rice balls, I thought I'd give it a shot. Things over here have been a little crazy these past 2 weeks and I thought this was a dish that could go a few days.

The recipe came from Gina's Skinny Recipes - if you have time go check out her site there are some amazing recipes on there!

Here is the recipe directly from her site - Sicilian Rice Casserole, Gina's Skinny Taste

Now I did make one tiny change.  I used 1 lb of  Italian Sausage with the casings removed and nixed the Turkey.  It was good and it did taste like an authentic arancini...almost.  I am used to my mothers arancini and have even had them in Sicily so when I tried this with the sausage meat it didn't hit home.  I will make this recipe again (I am already planning to make it for a few friends later this month) but plan on using a meatloaf mix instead.  I am almost positive using this instead of the sausage and/or turkey will get me the taste that I am familiar with.  Like I said, it was good and we all enjoyed it - my mother included.

And here is a picture ...

Patrizia's Simple Risotto

I will be the first to admit that Risotto scared me.  After watching countless episodes of Gordon Ramsey's Hells Kitchen who wouldn't be? But when you look at it, Risotto is simply rice and a liquid (I mainly use Chicken Broth) with a few little extras. So, I figured I would give a shot and once I started I haven't been able to stop!
Risotto should be firm, but not crunchy - I guess you can say Al-dente.  It also shouldn't stick or clump together.  In my recipe I use bouillon cubes to make my own chicken broth.  I've made it using canned chicken broth and I didn't really care for it...it tasted to chicken-y.  Anyway... It's not as hard as you think...trust me!

• 6 cups of water
• 2 1/2 Chicken flavored bouillon cubes
• 1 1/2 Cups of Arborio rice
• 1/2 Vidalia or Sweet Onion finely diced
• Butter
• Olive Oil
• 5 Quart Saute Pan

1. Add bouillon cubes to 6 cups of water to make chicken broth, boil and remove from heat
2. Heat 3 Tbsps. (or so) of butter and oil in saute pan
3. Add chopped onion and cook till translucent
4. Add Arborio rice to the pan and saute until SOME of the rice turns light brown - you don't want to brown all the rice..once you see a few pieces turning light brown move on to step 5
5. Now the fun part...add 1 cup of your chicken broth to your rice and stir until the broth is absorbed, then add another cup and stir...you will repeat this process at least 5 times.  
6. Risotto cannot be left unattended - if the liquid gets absorbed and you aren't there to add more liquid it can easily scorch
7. Now that you are about 5 cups in it's time to taste it.  Your risotto should not be to thick or starchy (browning it properly will help alleviate that)
8. I am usually done after 5 cups of broth - however I make 6 cups just in case it needs a little more liquid
9. If you taste it and find that it's still a little crunchy and the liquid has been absorbed, add a little more broth - about 1/2 cup at a time
10. I guess this is where it can get tricky - but once you get the hang of it you can eyeball it and 'just know' when it's done
11. Remove your risotto from heat - you can now add a little grated Parmesan cheese if you'd like.  In this recipe I do not.  I have a few other variations that I make - Mushroom, Shrimp, and Cheesy Parmesan  to name a few - You'll have to wait for those :-)