MORE PLEASE - MINIMALIST MAXIMALISM
Spicy Prawn Fregola, Onion Risotto Bianco, Crushed Olive and Ricotta Crostini
Happy Monday and Happy March to my wonderful More Please subscribers, thanks as ever for supporting The Dinner Party.
March brings a burning thirst for warmer weather and longer days that is never quenched. I sadly don’t have a solution for that, as I am not able to control the seasons or moons, however I can offer respite in the form of food. Minimalist maximalism is of course a contradiction in terms, but let me go with it. To me it is a mindset that we adopt when Spring and Summer have arrived and we are more inclined to let our ingredients do the talking when we cook. So, even though it is very much still wintry as hell here in London, I am going to pretend it isn’t in my kitchen. This doesn’t mean we have to buy ingredients that are super out of season and summery, to me it means thinking more laterally about how we use what we have. In the spirit of this months theme of minimal ingredients, each of our recipes today uses as few as I could reasonably manage and encourages you to apply them in different ways. You may notice that every recipe is Italian in style; well, that’s because it’s my comfort zone, but it’s also a cuisine that embodies minimalist maximalism perfectly.
Starting strong we have a Spicy Prawn Fregola that positively oozes Sardinian sun. Instead of using fish stock we make a quick and easy broth with our prawn shells and tomato flesh to cook our pasta in. It’s got 7 ingredients, 8 if you include olive oil, which I don’t, and takes 30 minutes, making it an excellent weeknight dinner.
Next is an Onion Risotto Bianco that is super comforting and rich. It makes use of lots of softly cooked onions as a creamy purée and tastes wondrously luxurious, despite the fact that it only uses 6 ingredients. Onion doesn’t often get a look in as a main event but it bloody deserves it. Not to mention they are just about the cheapest vegetable you can buy.
Finally, Crushed Olive and Ricotta Crostini make a gorgeous canapé, antipasti or even light lunch. They are dangerously moreish, the warm marinated olives sitting on top of creamy dollops of ricotta and crisp toasts mean you get one of those rare “perfect bites”. Salty, sour, spicy, creamy and crunchy all in one go, and only 6 ingredients.