Never have I made risotto just for the purpose of using the leftovers! This was a first. And rarely do we even HAVE leftover risotto on the rare occasions that I make it. But I adore the stuff. I remember oh-so-well the first time I had it – at a cooking class back in the 1980’s; it was champagne (and asparagus) risotto. I thought I’d died and gone to heaven, it was so good. Over the ensuing years I have made the risotto, using champagne, but we need to have an excuse to drink the rest of the bottle (do we ever need an excuse to drink champagne? what am I thinking?). My favorite technique was to serve risotto for guests, and I’d get THEM to stir it. Back in those days risotto was still a novelty – at least here in the U.S. of A., and most cooks hadn’t made it before, so they were willing to do the stirring if I supervised.
What I liked about this dish, these risotto cakes, was that I could make the risotto earlier in the day. At a time when I wasn’t trying to be a one-armed paperhanger at the stove, stirring the risotto while trying to get 3 or 4 other things done at the same time and dinner on the table. That’s never a good combination for successful risotto.
Since I didn’t have any leftover risotto, of course I needed to make some. No prob. The recipe came from a cooking class with Phillis Carey a couple of weeks ago. I 
forgot to take my point-and-shoot camera, so the recipes from that class will need to wait until I make them. And yes, I will make several of them. This is the first one. With some room temp risotto, then (pictured above), I added a raw egg, stirred it up, then divided it into about 8 equal parts. And did my best to get them to hold together. Phillis told us the mixture needs to be sticky, otherwise it won’t hold together. Uh, yes. I managed, though, and once the cakes were on the parchment paper lined sheet, I used a spatula to kind of push them together a bit into more round shapes, then the cakes were refrigerated for several hours before they were dipped in bread crumbs and sautéed in olive oil. My thought was to cook them all, then freeze the 6 left over to pull out when I don’t feel like making another side dish. Freeze it with a little snack-size baggie with a little bit of the aioli. The aioli does have mayo in it, so am not sure it will freeze all that well, but I’ll try it anyway. Pictured at left are the risotto cakes as they’re sautéing in a bit of olive oil.
Recipe Tip:
Phillis also suggested you could press the entire risotto mixture (with the egg added) into a very well-buttered and bread crumbed 9-inch round baking dish, stick small shaved pieces of Parmesan cheese down into the rice, bake it for 40 minutes at 375°, then hopefully turn it upside down onto a heated round plate and cut in wedges to serve.
The risotto itself was very good. With the addition of onion, vermouth and saffron. I could have eaten a plate full of it right then and there. Next time I make this I think I’ll double the recipe so I can make them a little bigger and fatter, and serve straightforward risotto too. But I wanted to serve these cakes as a side dish with dinner. Phillis served it as a first course with shrimp. And it was very good – don’t get me wrong – but I rarely serve first courses.
The aioli is ever-so easy – you can roast a red pepper in the oven if you’d prefer, but Phillis used jarred/canned roasted peppers. One of the small jars is just the right amount needed here. Too easy! I used the sauce to drizzle on the roast pork I served with it. Really good.
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Saffron Risotto Cakes with Roasted Red Pepper Aioli
Recipe By: From a cooking class with Phillis Carey
Serving Size: 8
RISOTTO:
3 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 cup onion — diced
1 pinch saffron threads — (large pinch)
1 cup Arborio rice
3 cups chicken broth
3/4 teaspoon salt
1/2 cup Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese — grated
CAKES:
1 large egg — beaten slightly
1 cup dry bread crumbs — finely crushed (not Panko)
8 small basil leaves or sprigs for garnish
About 1/4 c olive oil
AIOLI:
1 whole red bell pepper — roasted (or use small jar of canned)
1/2 teaspoon sugar
1/2 cup mayonnaise
1 pinch red pepper flakes
1 small garlic clove — minced
1. RISOTTO: Melt butter in a 3-quart saucepan over medium heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring occasionally, until soft and tender, about 8 minutes.
2. Meanwhile, bring the chicken broth to a simmer and keep near the risotto with a large ladle.
3. Add the saffron and rice to the onions. Cook and toss to coat the rice in the butter. Add the wine and simmer until most of the liquid has evaporated. Add one cup of heated broth to rice. Cook, uncovered, stirring constantly over medium or medium-low heat so the liquid continues to simmer; cook until nearly all the broth is absorbed. Add 3/4 cup more broth and cook that, stirring almost constantly, until it’s absorbed. Add salt and cook the rice until it’s tender, stirring constantly and adding more broth as necessary. Test rice and once it’s cooked, remove from heat. Do not overcook.
4. Transfer the rice to a bowl and stir in the Parmesan cheese. Let cool for an hour or so, and up to 24 hours in the refrigerator.
5. CAKES: Stir the beaten egg into the rice and divide up the rice into 8 equal parts. The rice should be very sticky. (If you’re doubling the recipe, you may not need double the amount of egg.) Form risotto cakes (flattish rounds, about 3/4 inch thick) and dredge both sides in bread crumbs. Refrigerate the cakes on a parchment-lined baking sheet until cooking time, or up to 8 hours.
6. Heat about 1/4 inch of olive oil in a nonstick skillet over medium high heat. When oil is hot but not smoking add cakes (in batches if necessary), browning both sides well and heating cakes through, about 3-4 minutes per side. Transfer cakes to a rack to drain, or to paper towels to blot off excess oil.
7. AIOLI: Puree roasted red bell pepper in food processor with the sugar. Remove to a bowl and stir in the mayonnaise (do not put the mayo in the food processor or it will make it too thin). Refrigerate until ready to serve and up to 3 days.
8. Set a hot risotto cake on a plate with a dollop of the red pepper aioli. Garnish with a basil leaf or sprig.
Per Serving: 311 Calories; 18g Fat (51.3% calories from fat); 7g Protein; 32g Carbohydrate; 1g Dietary Fiber; 43mg Cholesterol; 696mg Sodium.
A year ago: Rice Pudding although I’ve made another heavenly rice pudding since then that I like even better
Two years ago: Gulliver’s Spinach
Marie
said on December 12th, 2009:
Carol, I’m seriously impressed. I am a rather lazy cook, and doubt I’d have the patience! They look truly delicious!
well, I’m retired, so I do have more time to cook than working folk. But the taste of these won me over! . . . carolyn t