Recipes

Spiced Rice Pudding Arancini with Cinnamon Sugar

Golden, crisp arancini filled with creamy, spiced rice pudding and rolled in cinnamon sugar for a warm, indulgent finish.

Ingredients

For the rice pudding base:

1kg arborio rice (or any risotto/pudding rice)
4 litres whole milk
2 cinnamon sticks (use 1 if you prefer milder spice)
10 cloves
3 star anise
500g caster sugar

To finish:

Pane mix – breadcrumbs (panko or fine dried), beaten eggs and flour
Cinnamon sugar (caster sugar mixed with ground cinnamon to taste)
Vegetable oil (for frying)

Method

1. Cook the rice pudding

Place the rice and milk into a large heatproof bowl or pan. Add the cinnamon sticks, cloves, star anise and caster sugar. Stir to dissolve the sugar.

2. Steam or cook gently

Best method: Place the bowl over a pan of simmering water (a bain-marie), cover tightly with cling film and steam.

Alternative: Cook directly in a pan over very low heat, stirring every 10 minutes so it doesn’t catch.

Cook for 1 hour 20 minutes to 3 hours (depending on method) until the milk is absorbed and the rice is soft and creamy. This may take longer than expected.

3. Cool completely

Remove and discard the cinnamon sticks, cloves and star anise. Chill until fully cold, ideally several hours or overnight, until firm enough to roll.

4. Form the arancini

Scoop out about 50g per ball (roughly two bites each). Roll into smooth balls.

5. Coat the balls

Prepare three bowls: flour, beaten egg and breadcrumbs. Coat each ball first in flour, then egg, then breadcrumbs. Use one hand for dry and one for wet to prevent sticking.

6. Fry

Heat oil to 180°C. Fry the arancini for about 3 minutes until golden. If not fully hot in the centre, place into a 180°C oven for a few minutes.

7. Finish and serve

Roll immediately in cinnamon sugar while hot so it sticks. Serve warm and enjoy the creamy, sweet, spiced centres.