So Good: Food & Wine with Heather Johnston

Video: Lemon Risotto

Click here for the written recipe!

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Video: Arancini with Lemon Risotto (Italian Rice Balls)

Click here for the written recipe.

Recipe: Arancini with Lemon Risotto (Italian Rice Balls)

This lovely dish does not require lemon risotto. Use whatever leftover risotto you have. In fact, with another flavor feel free to include a little square of Mozzarella cheese in the center. It gets lost in the lemon risotto, especially with the addition of pork, so I skipped the extra calories.  Simply use your pinky to put a little hole in the rice ball, place the cheese inside and then cover it up. Bread and fry as instructed. Cheers.

2 cups canola oil for frying

1/2 cup flour

1 egg, lightly beaten

1/2 teaspoon vegetable oil

3/4 cup dried bread crumbs

1/2 teaspoon salt

pinch of black pepper

About 1 1/2 cups of leftover lemon risotto

1 egg yolk

2 tablespoons milk

diced leftover pork (or chicken or shrimp) about 1/4 cup

1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley

Heat canola oil in a large dutch oven to about 350F. Meanwhile, set up three shallow bowls. Put flour in the first one, the beaten egg with 1/2 tablespoon of oil in the second, and bread crumbs in the third. Add a pinch of salt a pepper to each bowl. Set aside.

Meanwhile, in a medium sized bowl combine risotto, meat, egg yolk, milk, and herbs if desired. Form small circles, about the size of a golf ball. (If inserting cheese, push pinky into center, add a small square of mozzarella, and cover.)

To Bread the Rice Balls.

It is preferable to keep one hand "dry" and one hand "wet" when breading in this method. Otherwise you end up with more coating on your hands than on the rice balls. (It won't be perfect, just do your best.)

So, with the dry hand, dredge the rice ball in the flour. Place in egg wash. With the wet hand, coat the ball in the egg wash. Place in the bread crumbs. With the dry hand, coat the ball in bread crumbs. Set on a platter. Repeat until done. You can do this ahead of time and place the coated balls in the refrigerator until ready to fry. 

When the oil is ready, place the rice balls into the pot. Stir to prevent from sticking. Fry until cook through and golden brown, about 4-5 minutes. Place on a sheet pan covered with a grill or a platter with paper towels. Serve with a salad and a lovely dry Rose.

Video Recipe: Lemon Risotto

This dish requires a bit of patience, but it is pretty straight forward and incredibly delicious. Risotto can be flavored with whatever you like. Try thyme instead of parsley, and stir in a bit of shrimp at the end if you'd like. Be sure to save the leftovers for Arancini or Rice Croquettes. Totally yummy.

6 cups diluted low or no salt chicken stock such as Kitchen Basics
3 tablespoon butter, divided
1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil
1 large shallot, chopped
1 leek, white part only, minced                                                                                                                            1 1/2 cups Aborio rice
1/2 cup dry white wine
1/2 cup grated Parmesean cheese
2 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley
Juice of two lemons, about 2 tablespoons
Zest of 2 lemons, about 2 teaspoons
salt and pepper to taste

In medium sauce pan, bring stock to a low simmer.  Lower heat to simmer.  Meanwhile in dutch oven, heat half of the butter and all of the olive oil. Add shallots and leeks, cook until softened, about 4 minutes. Add rice, stir until lightly toasted, about 4 minutes. Pour in wine, stir until evaporated, about 1 minute.  Ladle in 1 cup of stock, simmer and stir until absorbed. Repeat this process until the rice is creamy and cooked "al dente," about 30 minutes.  Add cheese, remaining butter, lemon juice and zest.  Season with salt and pepper to taste. Add parsley, serve immediately.  Delicious as a side dish for sauteed pork chops or as a meal with a salad.

Video: Absolut Brooklyn BBQ Chicken

Click here for the written recipe. For including Absolut in my post, I received one bottle of vodka, a Flip camera, and was invited to appear on the site as a featured blogger. In case you were wondering...;)

Video Recipe: Grilled Chicken Thighs with Absolut Brooklyn BBQ Sauce

I made this recipe using Absolut Brooklyn Vodka, which is a special edition for the summer of 2010, and infused with Red Apple and Ginger. It works beautifully with this recipe, but you can replace it with any apple flavored vodka, or simply add 2 tablespoons of apple juice. This recipe makes more than enough for the chicken, and the leftover sauce be kept in the fridge for up to two weeks. Click here for the video.

For including Absolut in my post, I received one bottle of vodka, a Flip camera, and was invited to appear on the site as a featured blogger. In case you were wondering...;)

Absolut Brooklyn BBQ Chicken

2 tablespoons vegetable oil

1 small onion, grated

3 cloves garlic, pressed

2/3 cup ketchup

2 tablespoons tomato paste

3 tablespoons dark brown sugar

8 ounce can tomato sauce

3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar

1 tablespoon Worcestershire Sauce

1 tablespoon Dijon mustard, or mustard of your choice

2 tablespoons molasses

1/4 cup of Absolut Brooklyn

1/4 teaspoon cayenne pepper (or more to taste)

For Chicken

8 boneless skinless chicken thighs

2 tablespoons Absolut Vodka

1/2 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

In a medium sauce pan, heat vegetable oil. Add onion and garlic, cook for 1 minute. Stir in remaining ingredients, let simmer 20 minutes, or to desired thickness.

Heat grill to medium high. In baking tray, marinade chicken with vodka. When the grill is ready, season chicken with salt and pepper.  Place chicken on grill, cook on each side for about 3 minutes. Then, generously brush on BBQ sauce. Cook 3 minutes, turn over and brush the other side. Continue to cook and brush chicken until completely cooked through. Chicken thighs offer a wonderful texture when cooked a bit longer than their white meat counterparts. Expect to cook them about 15 minutes, depending on the size of each thigh. Enjoy with a tasty drink like my Sangria.