Risotto with Moretti meringues

The one we present today is the second last of the twenty recipes in the finals of the fourth edition of Premio Birra Moretti Grand Cru. Stefano Cipollini had presented a Beer meringue with truffle ice cream as his dessert, while his savoury dish is a rich and complex risotto. Which we leave the chef who created it to introduce.

When creating my mini-menu I wanted to weave a sort of Ariadne’s thread between first course and dessert, choosing two different types of meringues and as many beer reductions. First of all, the freshness of Birra Moretti Baffo d’Oro is perfectly matched with the risotto and its richness of fish. Having presented it in the shape of a meringue allowed me to play with textures and fragrances. Birra Moretti Grand Cru, instead, embraces the roundness of cinta senese lard with its structure.

Risotto with garlic, oil and chilli pepper, seafood, cinta senese lard and frozen Birra Moretti meringues

Recipe for 3 people

INGREDIENTS
For the oil infusion
20 g extra virgin olive oil
1 fresh chilli pepper
15 g celery
2 garlic cloves

For the seafood
500 g fresh telline
extra virgin olive oil
1 garlic clove
1 glass of white wine

For the frozen beer meringue
200 g Birra Moretti Baffo d’Oro
1 g albumin
1 teaspoon of acacia honey
liquid nitrogen

For the Birra Moretti Grand Cru reduction
300 g Birra Moretti Grand Cru
20 g elderberry syrup
cardamom spray

For the risotto
170 g carnaroli rice
25 g cinta senese lard
13 g frozen extra virgin olive oil
14 g Parmigiano Reggiano matured 36 months
60 g shelled telline
40 g telline cooking water
36 g sea urchin meat
40 g white wine
3 lt vegetal broth
salt to taste
cardamom spray

METHOD
Prepare the oil, garlic, chilli pepper and celery infusion, putting all the ingredients into a saucepan at 60°C for 20 minutes. Cool and strain.

Prepare the telline thoroughly cleaning them in water. Open them in a pan with garlic and oil, add the white wine. Once they open, remove them from the stove and cool them in a chiller. Shell them and rinse them in their cooking water, which we will then strain with a cloth.

Prepare the reduction putting the Birra Moretti Grand Cru in a saucepan with the elderberry syrup, a spray of cardamom and simmer until the texture becomes that of a syrup.

Prepare the risotto, toasting it in a copper saucepan and then adding the white wine. Let it fully evaporate then start to add the vegetal broth, gradually, until the cooking is completed (around 14 minutes). Two minutes before the rice is cooked, add the cooking water from the telline, then add the telline and finish cooking the rice. Away from the stove, cream with the frozen oil, the parmesan, the cinta senese lard, the sea urchin meat, the garlic and chilli pepper infusion and two sprays of cardamom and leave to rest for 2/3 minutes, covering the saucepan with a lid.

Prepare the frozen meringue made with Birra Moretti Baffo d’Oro, by putting the latter into a planetary mixer with the honey, whisking it with the albumin. Once it reaches a very airy and dense thickness, take it with a spoon and immerse it in liquid nitrogen, forming some small meringues.

Place the risotto on a plate, put a few small pieces of sea urchins on top, lightly spray some more cardamom spray. Place the frozen Birra Moretti Baffo d’Oro meringues in the middle, and add some drops of Birra Moretti Grand Cru reduction. Serve immediately.