THE WEEKEND, AT YOUR OWN PACE
The Long
Sunday
Lunch
Crisp toast. A generous pan of lemon chicken. Pancakes after lunch, because the afternoon is yours. Three courses, four places, and a little room to stay.
FOR FOUR PEOPLE
THREE COURSES
ONE LONG AFTERNOON
A good Sunday lunch has a particular rhythm. Something crisp arrives first. A substantial dish settles in the middle. Then the plates are cleared, the conversation wanders, and somebody notices that there is still something sweet to come.
This menu follows that rhythm through lemon, ricotta and a few pleasing changes of texture: artichoke and butter bean toasts, chicken over glossy orzo, then little ricotta pancakes with roast plums. The ingredients feel related; each course has its own character. Set four places, leave space for the serving dishes, and let the afternoon find its pace.
Before anybody sits down
Give the table some room
Start with the empty space. A pan of orzo needs somewhere to land; so do elbows and a dish passed from hand to hand. Put the essentials down, then stop. A rumpled cloth, simple glasses and mismatched plates can do plenty. One deliberately odd detail makes it yours: a deep blue bowl, a folded red napkin, a single lemon sitting where a flower might have been.
Read all three recipes before cooking. Set out the pans, measure the stock, rinse the beans and chickpeas, and group the ingredients by course. Keep the dairy and chicken refrigerated until needed. A clear worktop is a particularly useful piece of Sunday-lunch equipment.
A small, sharp opening
First, something with edges
The first bite belongs to the toast: a firm, deeply toasted base against soft lemon ricotta and warm butter beans. The artichokes bring another kind of crispness, with parsley, pine nuts and lemon zest scattered over the top. It is a small construction of pale, green and gold, best eaten before anybody gets too tidy about it.
For this three-course menu, select 2 servings on the toast recipe. Build the two toasts and cut each in half, giving four people a proper taste without making the starter a meal of its own. Pat the artichokes dry before frying, have the ricotta and beans ready, and toast the bread last. Assemble and serve immediately.
The generous middle
Let the lemon do the talking
The main course carries the same lemon into a warmer register. Chicken thighs roast beside the lemon halves while the orzo cooks with shallots, thyme, stock and chickpeas. Spinach folds into the pan at the end. The result is a bowl with plenty happening in it, brought together by the cooked roasting juices and a squeeze of the roasted fruit.
Keep the chicken pieces in one layer and follow the recipe's temperature check: the thickest part of each thigh should reach 74°C. Give them their five-minute rest. Meanwhile, watch the orzo rather than the clock alone. It should be tender and loose; the method allows a little hot water if it gets too tight. Spoon into shallow bowls, add the sliced chicken and juices, and put the roast lemon within reach.
Between one thing and the next
Leave a little daylight
There is no need to chase the main course with dessert. Clear a few plates. Refill the water. Let somebody tell the longer version of their story. These are substantial recipes, and the pause gives the sweet course a chance to feel welcome.
It also makes the cooking practical. The chicken roasts at 220°C conventional; the plums need 200°C. Once the chicken is out, turn the oven down for the fruit. Leave the pancake batter until you are ready for its short rest and a spell at the stove. This lunch asks for two returns to the kitchen, so invite somebody to keep you company.
Leave enough room on the table for the food, and enough room in the afternoon for each other.
A very good reason to linger
Pancakes, at this hour?
Yes. Small lemon ricotta pancakes make a wonderfully playful ending, especially beside plums with purple skins and warm, syrupy juices. A spoonful of Greek yoghurt gives the plate a cooler, tangier corner. Make a loose little stack, leave some fruit visible, and let the juices find their way across the plate.
Fold the batter just until the dry flour disappears; the small ricotta flecks can stay. After its five-minute rest, cook small ladlefuls over medium-low heat. Each batch takes roughly four to five minutes across both sides, so allow time for the whole bowl. Keep the heat gentle enough for the centres to cook through. Serve with the roasted fruit, yoghurt and remaining maple syrup, and make room for the last forkful.
An unhurried plan for four · first plates at 13:00
A loose plan.
A good lunch.
Use the times as a rhythm, and the recipes as your guide.
12:00 · Set the scene
Set four places, read the recipes and measure the ingredients. Keep chilled ingredients refrigerated until needed.
12:25 · Get ready
Prepare the toast ingredients and chicken tray. Make the lemon ricotta and refrigerate it while cooking. Preheat the oven to 220°C conventional.
12:40 · Start the toast
Cook the beans; toast the pine nuts and crisp the artichokes. Toast the sourdough last, then assemble just before serving.
13:00 · The first plates
Serve four half-toasts. Put the chicken and lemon into the oven for the recipe's 22–28-minute roast, checking doneness rather than relying on time.
13:12 · Back to the stove
Start the shallots for the orzo, then follow the recipe through the 10–12-minute simmer. Check the chicken reaches 74°C and rest it for 5 minutes.
Around 13:35 · The main course
Finish the orzo with spinach, butter and roast lemon. Serve with sliced chicken and its cooked juices. Turn the empty oven down to 200°C.
After the main · Sweet things
Roast the plums for 15–20 minutes. Mix the pancake batter, rest it for 5 minutes and cook in batches. Allow 30–40 minutes for this stage.
Around 14:30 · Stay a while
Bring out the pancakes with warm plums, yoghurt and maple syrup. Later is fine, too.
THE USEFUL BITS
Good things to know.
Four people, three courses
Use 2 servings of toast, 4 of chicken and 4 of pancakes. The toast is a smaller opening; the other courses are generous.
A little kitchen company
Cook the orzo while the chicken roasts. Make dessert after the main course, with time for several pancake batches.
Keep the rhythm flexible
The schedule is a guide. Follow the recipes' doneness checks and let lunch move if the chicken or pancakes need longer.
THERE’S NO NEED TO RUSH.
Stay a while.
Three courses, a familiar thread of lemon, and a sweet ending borrowed from the breakfast table. The recipes give you the structure. The space between them is yours.
Find something else to cook ↗