Spring Antipasto Platter

The antipasto table in old-fashioned Italian restaurants is a sort of precursor to the modern-day salad bar, though usually far better. The idea is to let customers serve themselves (or be served by the maître d’) a few spoonsful of room temperature vegetable preparations—grilled eggplant, roasted peppers, marinated mushrooms—along with a little cheese and salumi. It’s an easy concept to adopt at home for a dinner party. Serve it buffet style, on a platter, or on individual plates as a first course. Change the vegetables seasonally; for spring use asparagus, fennel, snap peas and young onions. Choose the very freshest mozzarella, burrata or ricotta, and thinly sliced prosciutto, salame, mortadella or lardo.

Ingredients

2 bunches small spring onions or scallions
Salt
1 bunch asparagus, about 1 pound, tough ends removed
½ pound sugar snap peas
2 medium fennel bulbs, trimmed and sliced crosswise into 1/8-inch-thick rings
4 ounces thinly sliced prosciutto, salame, mortadella or lardo
Flaky sea salt or fleur de sel
Black pepper
Extra-virgin olive oil
Basil or mint leaves
1 pound fior di latte, bufala mozzarella, burrata or fresh ricotta, at cool room temperature

4 to 6 servings

Preparation

Heat the broiler. Put a large pot of water on to boil.
Trim tops, roots and outer layer of spring onions, then arrange in one layer on a broiler pan. Broil until they are lightly charred on one side, 2 to 3 minutes, then turn and broil the other side until onions have softened a bit, about 3 minutes more. (It’s fine if they become blackened in spots.) Remove pan and let cool to room temperature.
When water boils, salt well and submerge asparagus. Cook briefly, about 2 minutes for medium spears. Lift asparagus from water and spread in 1 layer on a kitchen towel and let cool to room temperature. Repeat process with the sugar snap peas and spread them on a separate kitchen towel.
Arrange spring onions, asparagus, snap peas and fennel on a large platter. Drape prosciutto around the edge. Season vegetables lightly with sea salt and pepper and drizzle with olive oil. Garnish platter with basil or mint leaves. Put cheese on a small cutting board and pass separately. (Alternatively, compose individual plates with all components.)

30 minutes