My brother did a grocery drop off … ok, it was beer, a grapefruit cooler and corn on the cob, but it still counts as groceries in my book. I am attempting to think of creative things to do with my goodies.
First, the fresh corn.
Risotto is usually a side dish like pasta but, like pasta, you can make it an entree by adding a protein.
Lemon Shrimp Risotto
I decided to make a basic risotto with a flavourful chicken stock (Better than Bouillon, in this case) with saffron threads and a half glass of Reisling Pinot Grigio. I removed one third of the risotto when it was almost done to a second saucepan and added diced sauteed shrimp to it and a bit more stock. I stirred in some lemon zest and juice just before serving.
Ingredients: 1 1/2 cup arborio rice, 1/2 cup white wine, 5 cups chicken stock with a pinch of saffron threads, 1 onion, finely diced, 1 large clove garlic, finely minced, 1 cup fresh kernel corn, 6 tbsp unsalted butter, 6 tbsp extra virgin olive oil, 3/4 pound peeled and deveined shrimp, zest and juice of 1/2 lemon, salt and pepper as needed. If desired, fresh basil leaves, julienned, may be added to the risotto along with the lemon zest and juice.
To the rest of the risotto, I added fresh corn kernels, cut off the cob and sauteed in butter and olive oil, and after refrigerating the risotto overnight, I made cheese arancini. I was going to add fresh basil to the filling but I got too tired to bother going outside to pluck fresh basil off my plants.
Speaking of basil … here are a few pictures. Of course, the hot weather has got me down so I’m letting my plants go to seed rather than harvesting them and making pesto as I’d planned.
Cooking is Fun ... Really!! 
I love risotto and it’s a great warming dish on cold winter’s nights which is what we’re experiencing at the moment. I love arancini balls too! And yours look terrific. Two great favourites of mine! xx
I actually like the arancini better than the risotto itself so I made extra risotto … had some with the shrimp and left the rest for the 2nd day. The corn was a fun add-in. 🙂
Wow this is such a valuable post, love how you have gone the extra mile and shown what to do with leftover risotto (:
Thank you. Arancini is a classic Italian dish which starts with leftover risotto. The version I made is vegetarian but a meat sauce (ragu) filling is widely seen as well. Often with a cube of mozzarella cheese.
Excellent idea to add fresh corn to arancini! I love them. It’s one of these cases when leftovers are often better than the main dish (especially if risotto contains just vegetables).
(From my few Italian trips’ experience, risotto, like pasta, are on the menu as starters, at least in the simple restaurants I went to; I always wonder how Italian women keep their slim waistlines 😉 Half a pizza is also a popular starter from what I saw! Nowadays fancy restaurants serve often risotto as a side dish, but I wonder if it’s as frequent in Italian fancy restaurants as abroad…)
Your basil looks very healthy. Mine is being devoured by some insects and organic insecticides don’t seem to bother them…
I should have used my basil ages ago … they’re all going to flower now. I’ll harvest the seeds and use them to grow new plants next spring.
Oh gosh, the risotto is gorgeous – both of them. And arancini is a wonderful thing! I have a recipe on my blog, too. I bet it’s not too late if you cut the basil back. I was just outside to get tomatoes and noticed my basil has bloomed again. Drat. I just sighed and walked away, lol! Now I’m motivated to get back out there!
I was just reviewing some of my Italian tagged posts and saw that I never responded. Thank you. I hope this summer I’m more responsible about using up my basil. Although right now I only have 2 little seedlings to deal with and an indoor plant that overwintered in the same medium sized pot as some oregano and has HUGE leaves on it.
Wow! I’m totally envious of your thriving basil plants!!! Mine’s looking pretty weak recently – which means I get to cook with it less unfortunately 😦
Loving the risotto! The ultimate comfort dish!
Thank you. I really should do something with it.
Definitely! 🙂 At least they’ll be there when you need them! Have a good day!
Love this post haha. Just letting you know that I have nominated you for the sunshine blogger award. I will just leave the link down below (:
http://www.blogtasticfood.com/sunshine-blogger-award-number-2/
Thank you. Sweet of you to think of me.