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FRITTO MISTO

There are no rules as to what you fry when making a fritto misto — it’s about a collection of flavours and textures. I’ve added some seafood here, but you can keep it veggie if you prefer. If you do include seafood in your fritto misto, put some aioli (see here) out on the table too.

Serves 4

sunflower oil, for deep-frying

1 small butternut squash, peeled, deseeded and finely sliced lengthways

1 fennel bulb, finely sliced lengthways

1 red onion, finely sliced lengthways

2 red peppers, deseeded and finely sliced lengthways

500g squid, cleaned, body sliced into fine rings and tentacles left whole

1 lemon, finely sliced into rings

a handful of drained tinned chickpeas, rinsed

1 chilli, finely chopped

a handful of mixed soft herbs

sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

2 lemons, cut into wedges, to serve

FOR THE BATTER

125g cornflour

125g plain flour

1 tsp baking powder

a pinch of sea salt

juice of 1 lemon

To make the batter, sift the dry ingredients into a bowl. Slowly add 275ml cold water while whisking to form a lump-free batter. Add the lemon juice and whisk once more. Put to one side while you prep your veg.

Fill a deep-fryer or a heavy-based saucepan one-third full with oil and heat it to 180°C (test by frying a small cube of bread; it should brown in 40 seconds). Dip the squash slices into the batter and then lower each one carefully into the hot oil. Cook for 3 minutes or until they start to caramelise then lift out of the pan using a slotted spoon and drain off the excess oil. Place on a few sheets of kitchen paper and dab dry.

Batter and cook the remaining vegetables, squid, lemon slices, chickpeas and chilli in the same way, although the softer ingredients will take slightly less time: 1–2 minutes.

Batter and fry the herbs separately — they will take less than a minute. Season all the battered ingredients with salt and pepper. Serve as a beautiful stack in the centre of the table, with wedges of lemon.