Whether you are entertaining or heading to a party this New Year’s Eve, this Arancini di Riso is sure to be a hit with your guests. New Year’s is a time for celebration, parties and appetizers…lots of appetizers! I will be serving my Arancini di Riso with a platter of Italian antipasti. These are best served right out of the deep fryer, but are almost as good prepared in advance and oven heated prior to serving. The dish is extremely versatile and for this reason, it is commonly found at both elegant Italian restaurants and at Italian street fairs. 

This past summer I was lucky enough to attended Vinalia, a wine and food festival in Guardia Sanframondi, Italy. During the festival, I indulged in many different types of Arancini di Riso that were being sold in the main square in town.  Some were made with ground beef, peas and tomatoes and others were made with cheese. Each had a style and flavor of its own. Mothers and grandmothers prepare them at home and then sell them at food stands during the fairs to demonstrate their culinary powers and bring home a little extra income.

In Italy, Arancini di Riso is made with bread crumbs but I prefer panko to plain breadcrumbs because it makes the dish lighter and crunchier.  The point here is that once you get familiar with the basic recipe, there are many options if you want to get creative.

Use only arborio rice for this dish.

If the mixture is overly moist, you can add an extra tablespoon of panko.

Place a piece of fontina cheese between equal amounts of mixture and form them into balls.

Serve the Arancini with your favorite marinara sauce or try mine.

I would like to say a big thank you to all of you who have supported me in 2017. Thanks for all the follows, likes, and comments. Your support and encouragement make this blog worthwhile!

May your New Year be filled with success, health, prosperity and happiness!

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Arancini di Riso

Course Appetizer

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 1 hour hour

Cook Time 1 hour hour

Total Time 2 hours hours

Servings 12 balls

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 3 cups chicken broth
• 2 shallots
• 4 Tablespoons butter divided
• 1 cup arborio rice
• 1/2 cup white wine
• 1/2 cup grated parmesan cheese
• 1/4 cup chopped fresh parsley
• salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste
• 6 ounces fontina cheese cubed
• 2 eggs beaten
• 1/2 cup flour
• 2 cups japanese panko flour
• Oil for frying

Instructions

• In a saucepan hit up the chicken broth. Set aside and keep it on simmer.
• In another saucepan heat the butter, add the shallots and sauté until translucent, about 3 minutes. Add rice, cook stirring it for 1 minute. Add wine, stir and cook until absorbed. Add one ladle of broth at the time and cook stirring often, allowing broth to be absorbed before adding more. Continue adding the broth until the rice is cooked, but still al dente, about 20 minutes.
• Take off heat. Add 2 Tbsp butter, the parmesan cheese and parsley. Taste the rice. Season with salt and pepper if necessary. Let it cool and refrigerate. If the rice is chilled it will be easier to roll into balls.
• It's time to form the balls. Place some rice on the palm of your hand. Place a piece of the fontina cheese between equal amounts of mixture and form them into balls. Continue forming balls until all the rice mixture is used.
• Set 3 plates side by side. Beat 2 eggs in a plate to blend. Place flour in another onel. Place panko in another one.
• Roll the arancini balls in flour shaking off the excess. Then roll them in the beaten egg. Then roll them in the panko.
• Fry balls in 3 inch oil at 375 degrees for 4 1/2 minutes or until they are golden brown. Drain them on a paper towel-lined plate.
• Serve them plain, or with marinara sauce on the side.
• If you would like to serve them at a later time, just before serving, place them on a baking sheet and re-heat in the oven at 400 degrees F for 7 to 10 minutes.
• Note: (If you are able to make the risotto the day before, this will work in your favor as it can be refrigerated and the balls will stick together much easier that way).
• Enjoy!

The post Arancini di Riso appeared first on My Global Cuisine.

As the holiday season approaches, I am sure you have just one question on your mind. What to serve with all those amazing entrees. For every entree you create you will need a nice dish to serve alongside, and these Roasted Asparagus and Mixed Mushrooms are the perfect choice. They are healthy and light, and taste delicious. The flavor of the vegetables is enhanced by the high heat of the oven which caramelizes the natural sugars in the vegetables creating a taste that is impossible to match when steaming or boiling. It’s my go-to side dish during Thanksgiving and Christmas. I have served this dish many times to my family and friends, and they all love it!

If you are looking for something to go along with your holiday turkey or ham, try serving these Roasted Asparagus and Mixed Mushrooms alongside my Tuscan Herbed Potatoes. Have the guests bring dessert, or make a French Yogurt Cake with Marmalade and you can be virtually done before the first guest walks through the door.  You can find the other recipes mentioned on my blog in the side dish and desert sections .

These Roasted Asparagus and Mixed Mushrooms can also be served alongside beef or pork tenderloin, turkey, or lamb making this dish the ‘swiss-army knife’ of side dishes.

Enjoy!

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Roasted Asparagus and Mixed Mushrooms

Course Side Dish

Cuisine American

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Cook Time 15 minutes minutes

Total Time 25 minutes minutes

Servings 10 servings

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 2 pounds fresh asparagus trimmed
• 1 pound mixed fresh mushrooms such as button, shiitake and/or crimini, and oyster cut in half
• 3 large cloves fresh garlic sliced thinly
• 1/2 Tsp salt
• 1/2 Tsp black pepper
• 1 Tbsp butter melted
• 1 Tbsp extra virgen olive oil
• 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh parsley - optional

Instructions

• Heat oven to 425 degrees F. Arrange asparagus and mushrooms on aluminum foil-lined 15X10X1-inch baking pan. Sprinkle garlic, salt and pepper on top. Drizzle melted butter with olive oil over vegetables.
• Bake, stirring occasionally, for 15 to 20 minutes or until vegetables are tender and lightly browned.
• Remove from oven.
• Transfer the vegetables to a serving dish and sprinkle the parsley on top, if using it.
• Serve immediately.
• Enjoy!
• Recipe adapted from Land O Lakes Recipe Collection

The post Roasted Asparagus and Mixed Mushrooms appeared first on My Global Cuisine.

When zucchini is in season, it is typically sweet and plentiful. Many Italians celebrate by making this wonderful Italian Zucchini Risotto and often find ways to compliment the dish with the beautiful zucchini flowers. This risotto is a colorful and flavorful summer dish that can be served as an appetizer or an entree.

When I am in the mood for comfort food, Italian Zucchini Risotto is one of the first things to come to mind. Its creamy, and there is something healing about the process of stirring and adding the broth slowly that is reminiscent of the way foods must have been prepared many years ago. Making risotto is wonderful not only because almost anything can be added to a risotto, but because it cooks slowly allowing you enough time to prepare another dish simultaneously while occasionally reaching over to give it a stir. Add a nice glass of wine to complete the scene and help you completely unwind.

Here is what the dish looks like as we move through the process.

Adding broth a little at a time…..

Mixing in the Basil, Parsley and Parmesan Cheese…..

It’s important to note that you really must use arborio, carnaroli or vialone rice. You cannot substitute for other rices, otherwise you won’t get enough starch out of it in order to make your risotto creamy and not sticky. Also, don’t be worry about the butter. It’s all natural and and skimping will not give you the same flavor or results. When it comes to butter I usually make every attempt to minimize or avoid it all together, but there are cases like when it’s really necessary. There comes a time when it really pays off to indulge, and this Italian Zucchini Risotto is a beautiful indulgence. If you want to be creative, try substituting some mushrooms, proscuito, fresh peas or any combination of the three.  The results will be equally delicious.

Here is ready to be plated. You can almost feel the creaminess!

I am confident that you will enjoy making it, and eating it will be even better!

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Italian Zucchini Risotto

Course Side Dish

Cuisine Italian

Prep Time 15 minutes minutes

Cook Time 40 minutes minutes

Total Time 55 minutes minutes

Servings 6 servings

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 6-7 cups chicken stock or vegetable stock
• 7 tablespoons of butter
• 1 tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil
• 3 zucchini about 3/4 pound, diced
• 1 large onion chopped very fine
• 1 parsley spring minced, and 1/4 cup minced
• 2 to 3 fresh basil leaves minced
• 1 1/2 cups Italian short-grain rice Arborio, Carnaroli or Vialone Nano
• Salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup grated Parmesan cheese

Instructions

• In a medium sauce pan heat up the broth and keep it at simmer.
• In a large skillet or heavy saucepan, combine 3 TBSP of butter and the olive oil and heat over medium-high heat. Add the zucchini and sauté, stirring until beginning to brown, about 10 minutes. Season with salt and pepper, transfer the zucchini to a bowl and reserve.
• Return the saucepan to the heat, add the remaining butter and heat over medium heat. Add the onion, parsley sprig and basil, and sauté, stirring often, until the onion is soft, about 7 minutes.
• Reduce the heat to medium, stir in the rice and saute, stirring, until the rice starts to stick to the pan. Immediately add a 4-ounce ladleful of the stock at a time.
• Cook, stirring until the stock is absorbed. Continue adding stock in this fashion and cooking until the rice is al dente, about 20 minutes.
• Remove from the heat, stir in the zucchini, remaining parsley and parmesan cheese.
• Serve immediately. Enjoy it!

The post Italian Zucchini Risotto appeared first on My Global Cuisine.

With ingredients including farm fresh eggs, herbs and cheese this French Herbed Omelette is packed with protein and is a great way to start the day. I searched online for a recipe but I did not find one with these exact ingredients. I did find this definition on dictionary.com:

omelette

Now, I just had to perfect my omelette technique which took me a few attempts but I finally got it down. There are a couple of secrets to making a great omelette. First, ensure your pan is properly greased. I use a touch of olive oil along with the butter. Adding a touch of olive oil raises the burning temperature of the butter and helps to keep your omelette from browning. Heat the pan over a medium low fire. Then add the proper amount of eggs for the size pan and to move the pan in a circular motion to distributing the egg mixture evenly.

While your eggs are still a little wet in the middle to add the cheese to the center of the omelette and continue to move the pan a little more and then fold the omelette in half or fold in from both sides.

Keep your fire on medium to low while you do this, as you don’t want to over cook your omelette. The technique is not difficult to master, but it requires a little patience until you get the hang of it.

I perfected it  after the third time, and now I can proudly say that I make a killer French Herbed Omelette just as good as the one I ate at Balthazar’s. Now if I could just figure out how to make their Almond Croissants….

Enjoy!

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French Herbed Omelette

Course Breakfast

Cuisine French

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 1 serving

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 2 large fresh eggs
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped chives
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped chervil
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped tarragon
• 1 teaspoon finely chopped parsley
• 1 oz of Gruyere or cheddar cheese sliced thin
• 1 teaspoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoon european style butter
• Sea Salt and Pepper

Instructions

• In a medium bowl briskly beat the eggs with a fork until frothy with no strands of egg whites remaining. Add the fresh herbs to the eggs, along with a pinch of salt and pepper and mix well. In an 8" inch nonstick skillet over a medium-low fire add 1 tsp of olive oil and the butter. Coat the pan well with the oil and butter. Heat the oil and butter until the mixture starts to gently bubble and add the eggs.
• Start to swirl the eggs as soon as you add them to the pan by moving the pan around in a circular motion and continue until the egg mixture starts to firm up and the omelette loosens from the bottom of the pan.
• This should require no more than a couple of minutes. Once the eggs are almost cooked but still slightly wet, add the cheese to the center of the omelette, and lower the fire to a simmer until the cheese starts to melt. Once the cheese starts to melt it's time to fold the omelette. In order to do that you will need to use a heatproof rubber or wooden omelette spatula.
• Fold the omelette by holding the skillet handle with one hand tilting the pan away from you while flipping half of the omelet to one side. You may also fold the two ends inward. Turn off the fire and let the omelet sit in the pan for a few seconds before serving.

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Growing up, I couldn’t wait for my birthday to come because I knew it meant I was going to have Brazilian Brigadeiros and lots of them! We never heard of themed birthday parties, or ChuckECheese. Mom served small wonder bread sandwiches filled with cheese or shredded chicken, mini hot-dogs and made a birthday cake and lots of Brazilian Brigadeiros. We gathered together in a circle and played musical chairs. They were the best birthday parties ever! Simple, inexpensive, low stress, and memorable.

Until today, I still have wonderful memories of these times. Besides making them up for birthdays, Brazilian Brigadeiros are a simple treat that you can make anytime you feel like having something chocolatey and sweet! They are made from just a few ingredients that all have relatively long shelf lives so you can make these anytime the mood or occasion strikes. For me, Brazilian Brigadeiros are comfort sweets. Their taste is a combination of caramel and chocolate and they remind me of my childhood in Brazil.  The beauty of these treats is that they are inexpensive and easy to prepare.

To make them, all you need to do is to combine the Sweetened Condensed Milk and the Unsweetened Cocoa in a sauce pan and simmer over low heat. Mix the ingredients together until thick and creamy being careful not to burn the mixture.

After combining the ingredients, let the mixture cool. Once cool, moisten your hands with a some soft unsalted butter and form into balls. Dip the balls into the chocolate sprinkles and place in small paper or foil cups. Place on a platter and serve.

This post is a special request from my daughter Juliana whose birthday is coming up in May. Love you baby cakes!

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Brigadeiro- Brazilian Chocolate Truffle

Course Dessert

Cuisine Brazilian

Prep Time 30 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 20 truffles

Author My Global Cuisine

Ingredients

• 1 14-ounce (397g) sweetened condensed milk
• 1 TBSP of unsalted butter plus extra for rolling the brigadeiros
• 3 TBSP of unsweetened cocoa
• 1 cup of chocolate sprinkles
• optional - mini paper cups

Instructions

• - Place the sweetened condensed milk, the butter and the unsweetened cocoa into a sauce pan, mix it together and cook over low heat stirring constantly for about 10 minutes.
• - Once the chocolate mixture thickens and starts to separate from the bottom of the pan remove from the fire and let the mixture cool completely.
• - Grease the palm of your hands with the room temperature butter and roll about one TSP of the chocolate paste into little balls. Roll them into the chocolate sprinkles and place the brigadeiro balls inside mini paper cups. If you can't find mini paper cups you can just arrange the brigadeiros together on a nice platter and serve.

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