Ingredients

For The Risotto: 

• 1 bunch of red beets with tops
• 3 T EVOO
• 1 small yellow onion, finely chopped
• Salt and pepper
• 2 cups arborio or carnaroli rice
• 4 cloves garlic, finely chopped or grated
• 1 ½ cups red wine
• 8 cups warm vegetable stock or chicken bone broth
• 1 cup grated pecorino cheese
• 3 T butter
• Optional Garnishes: toasted chopped pistachios or pine nuts, chopped mint, dill and parsley, shredded ricotta salata 

For The Arancini Balls:

• Frying oil, about 3 inches 
• A few cups of leftover chilled beet risotto
• ½ cup fresh steamed peas
• ½ pound mozzarella cut into small cubes
• About ¾ cup of flour
• 3 eggs, beaten
• 2 cups of fine breadcrumbs
• 1 cup of grated pecorino cheese
• 1 tablespoon of lemon zest
• 2 teaspoon of orange zest
• 2 tablespoon of finely chopped parsley and dill 
• Lemon wedges, to serve

Directions

For The Risotto: 

Cut off the beet tops and wash them well. Stem the beet greens and discard the stems. Chop the greens and reserve for later.

Preheat the oven to 425 F. Spray the beets with EVOO spray and wrap together in a heavy duty foil packet. Roast until tender, about an hour. 

Let cool in the foil pouch until cool enough to handle. Peel the skins of the roasted beets off using a paper towel. Shred the beets on a box grater. 

Heat a pot with a round bottom over medium to medium-high heat.  

Add EVOO and onion to the pan and season with salt and pepper. Cook for a couple of minutes to soften. Add rice and garlic and toast the rice for a minute or two then add the wine and let reduce and absorb. Begin adding warm stock, a few ladles at a time, and stir vigorously with each addition with a risotto spoon or wooden spoon. About halfway through adding the stock, stir in the grated beets and then continue to add the remaining stock. From the time you begin adding stock, the risotto will take 18 minutes. The creamy quality of risotto comes from the development of the starch so stirring is important. When the risotto is almost tender, stir in the butter and pecorino cheese.

If you are making arancini, put a few ladles of the risotto onto a small sheet tray lined with parchment paper and let cool to room temperature. Then cover with plastic wrap and let chill, preferably overnight.

Wilt the beet greens into the pot of risotto. Transfer to a serving bowl and garnish with herbs, ricotta salata and nuts. 

For The Arancini Balls:

Heat oil  in a deep sided medium pot over medium heat to 350 F.  

Use a small scoop to portion out uniform balls of cold leftover beet risotto.  Embed a pea and a mozzarella cube into the middle of a scoop of rice and roll with your hands to shape into a uniform ball.

In three shallow dishes or trays, set up a breading station. Add flour to the first tray, beaten eggs to the second and breadcrumbs to the third. Season the breadcrumbs with the pecorino cheese, lemon and orange zest, and chopped herbs.  Coat each rice ball first in the flour, then eggs and finally seasoned bread crumbs.   

Fry rice balls until golden and remove with a spider to drain on paper towels.  

Serve warm or at room temperature with lemon wedges.