The Italian saying, ‘Prendere due piccioni con una fava’ – catch two pigeons with one fava bean – sounds slightly kinder than ‘kill two birds with one stone’ but its meaning, ‘achieve two aims at once’ is the same. It’s fave (broad bean) time again here and they’re particularly fresh, sweet and earthy tasting at present.
We had ‘two aims’ with this lot – a fave and pancetta risotto, and the next day, making the leftover risotto into fritters. (Roger not me, as my cooking is more southern Italian.) I admit, it’s the first time I’ve tried risotto fritters and they are delicious. Maybe a bit too much! And while I can’t take credit for this lot, I did help shell the fave, broad beans.
Shelling is a bit of work, especially removing the outer peel from each bean but we did so ‘Italian style’, sitting around the kitchen table chatting while the sun was setting. It reminded me of an elderly couple I once saw in Basilicata, sitting outside their door in the lane, shelling and chatting together. I admire how, many older Italians, from lifetimes of hard work, appear to be able to turn even tedious tasks into a time of togetherness and having a chat. Those Nonni always seem to know what’s best. Zoe x
Zoë Boccabella 
Hi Zoe. I am still loving receiving your blogs – thank you.
I would really like to have your recipe for the fava risotto fritters. Would you mind sharing that?
Susan
Hi Susan, thank you – that is really wonderful to hear!
We didn’t follow a recipe as such but the fritters are fairly easy…
Make a basic risotto using pancetta and fava as the star ingredients.
Using the cold leftover risotto, mix in a bowl with 1-2 beaten eggs (depending on how much risotto you have), adding some breadcrumbs if the mixture is too wet and won’t hold.
Form these into flattish fritters – hamburger patty size (like in the photo).
You may crumb these if you wish (we did). And simply shallow fry in olive oil and keep warm in a low oven while the rest are frying (the oven also helps make sure they are warm all the way through).
They can be a bit delicate so just be careful when turning them in the fry-pan so they don’t fall apart.
Hope this helps. Buon appetito!
Best wishes, Zoe x