The Perfect Winter Antipasto Recipe
A beautifully muted palate on this platter of veg, meat and cheese that makes use of winter’s produce. Fennel, usually so bracing in its anise flavor, mellows and softens as it roasts. Grapes, often just plopped as a bunch on the corner of a cheese plate, transform into deeply sweet and satisfying orbs when they spend time in the oven with the fennel. A flavorful and pungent paste of anchovies coats the potatoes, a surprising addition to an antipasto. Rich mortadella, a soft young cheese and some plump olives round it out nicely.
Directions
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with foil.
For the fennel and grapes
Arrange the fennel in a single layer and the grape bunch on one baking sheet. Drizzle with oil and season with crushed red pepper flakes, salt and orange zest. Toss to coat and spread evenly on the sheet. Roast until bottoms lightly brown, about 15 minutes. Flip the fennel and roast until other side browns and fennel is tender, and the grapes slump and soften, about 10 minutes.
Remove from oven, drizzle the orange juice over the fennel and grapes and set aside to cool slightly.
For the potatoes
Spread the potatoes in a single layer on the other baking sheet. Chop the garlic and anchovies together on the cutting board, sprinkle with 1/4 teaspoon of the salt, and mash and chop until it’s mostly a paste. Add in the parsley and chop it into the paste. Mix it in a small bowl with the oil, then scrape out onto the potatoes and toss to coat them with the paste. Sprinkle with the remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt and pepper and toss to coat. Roast, stirring once or twice, until potatoes are golden and soft, about 30 minutes. Set aside to cool slightly.
For the salad
Arrange the fennel, grapes, potatoes, mortadella, cheese, olives, and pepperoncini in piles on a platter and serve.
