Once again, I have the pleasure and honor of presenting an English translation of a recipe by my good friend and fellow blogger, Sara Drilli (I Pi@ttini di Drilli). Every so often, Saridda publishes a very Sicilian recipe that takes me immediately to the point of distraction — literally! The recipe becomes all I can think about! This was the case with Sara's Swordfish Balls, and it happened again last Monday with these Couscous Arancini. I said to her, "Saridda, it's 7:13 in the morning, Boston time. I'll make a deal with you: if at noon I still can't stop thinking about these arancini, I will translate the recipe for my English-speaking readers. Deal?"
I already had a minor obsession with arancini. They are one of the glories of Sicily. They are scrumptious, and they are everywhere on the island. Once I had one at the cafeteria in the Palermo train station. Another time I had one (OK, two) at the Catania airport. In both cases they were more delicious than any arancini that I have ever tasted in the United States of America.
But then! To replace the rice with couscous! I was captivated, because you're taking a Mediterranean specialty and making it even more Mediterranean. And, of course, I adore pasta.
Without any further ado: Sara Drilli and her Couscous Arancini (Arancine di Couscous).
Arancine di Couscous
by Sara Drilli (I Pi@ttini di Drilli)
translated into English by L.C.
by Sara Drilli (I Pi@ttini di Drilli)
translated into English by L.C.
"Cuckoo!" Puntual, almost like a Swiss watch, they arrived on the table at exactly 1 p.m. last Wednesday, a quick version of my beloved arancini!
When you must choose between two things, renouncing one of them can be rather painful. And if the battle on the field is between arancini and couscous ... voilà, the winner in this case was a third contestant!
Couscous arancini, the shape and the procedure almost identical to the delicious rice balls ... but with a different filling! The filling is, in fact, couscous: cooked, mixed with mozzarella and prosciutto, then fried in abundant extra-virgin olive oil!
As usual, I enjoyed myself while coming up with the preparation of this little dish. And this time, the pseudo-arancini arrived on the table with DIFFICULTY! Difficulty because you try one, and one leads to another ... They are ideal for appetizers, finger food, or apericena*. They are original, and they can be prepared quickly. In fact, the preparation time is merely the time to cook the couscous, plus the time to fry them in the skillet until they have a thin, golden crust!
* = Apericena is a Northern Italian word, a blend of aperitivo (aperitif) and cena (dinner). Apericena is the equivalent of tapas: a dinner consisting not of one large dish but of an assortment of several small dishes. — L.C.
Ingredients for c. 20 arancini
250 g couscous
1 egg
freshly grated parmigiano
mozzarella
prosciutto
bread crumbs
(plus extra-virgin olive oil for frying)
As usual, I enjoyed myself while coming up with the preparation of this little dish. And this time, the pseudo-arancini arrived on the table with DIFFICULTY! Difficulty because you try one, and one leads to another ... They are ideal for appetizers, finger food, or apericena*. They are original, and they can be prepared quickly. In fact, the preparation time is merely the time to cook the couscous, plus the time to fry them in the skillet until they have a thin, golden crust!
* = Apericena is a Northern Italian word, a blend of aperitivo (aperitif) and cena (dinner). Apericena is the equivalent of tapas: a dinner consisting not of one large dish but of an assortment of several small dishes. — L.C.
 |
| "As you can see, we are fried." |
Ingredients for c. 20 arancini
250 g couscous
1 egg
freshly grated parmigiano
mozzarella
prosciutto
bread crumbs
(plus extra-virgin olive oil for frying)
TU SEI UNICO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
RispondiEliminaYou're not so bad yourself, Sara. Complimentoni e grazie. XO
RispondiElimina