I’m reluctant to reduce chefs’ repertoires to a single bowl of food — or a so-called signature dish — but in his simply named “Coppa Plate,” it’s possible to see the essence of Nick Benninger’s cooking.
The dish with its unadorned, no-nonsense name is new on the menu at The Charcuterie Bar this week: chile-and-fennel coppa, frizzled wild leek, apple butter-mustard vinaigrette and pickled apples showered with three-year-old cheddar.
Benninger plates Linton Pasture Pork coppa (Photo/andrewcoppolino.com).
Who needs further embellishment?
Perfect for sharing, the combined ingredients captured under their functional title offer flavours much more than spartan.
“It’s a tip of the hat to Waterloo Region, especially with the apples and the apple butter,” says Benninger.
