As the weather warms, it’s natural to turn our thoughts to lighter dishes, barbeques and good wine. Having a couple of easy recipes up our sleeve – and a bottle of something in the cupboard to pair them with – is handy.

David Allison knows a thing or two about snacks and canapés. For more than 22 years, he ran now-closed Stix Catering – which at its peak had more than 200 staff. He also worked with Rockpool Consulting and Neil Perry to cook in-flight meals for Qantas’s first and business classes.

We asked Allison to shed some light on his go-to seasonal snack: the canapé. This one combines roughly torn sourdough, whipped ricotta, ribbons of melon and thinly sliced prosciutto. “It’s super fresh and great on a sunny day,” Alison says.

If you’re cooking for a crowd, you can prep the ricotta in advance. Work it into a light, whipped consistency – akin to heavy whipped cream – with a whisk or food processor. You can also loosen up the cheese with a little milk.

While charring the sourdough, you may be tempted to err on the side of caution. But Allison insists on slightly burning the outside. “You want to see black char marks... In doing that, it’ll get nice and brown and crisp around the edges that aren’t getting charred.” Then, tear your barbequed bread into bite-sized pieces and give it another quick turn on the grill. 

For your ham, Allison suggests using Parma ham, prosciutto di San Daniele, Jamón ibérico, or something local like wallaby prosciutto.

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Charred sourdough canapés with ricotta, ham and melon

Serves: 40

Prep time: 20 minutes

Cook time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

500g fresh ricotta

1/2 honeydew melon, thinly sliced

1 sourdough loaf, white or country style

100ml Australian olive oil

2x 100g packets of Parma ham, thinly sliced

1 lemon

Small bunch of mint

Salt and pepper

Method

Whip ricotta in a bowl or food processor to a light consistency. Season with salt and pepper to taste. Set aside.

Peel and de-seed honeydew melon. Cut into quarters and trim out centre so you’re left with what look like leaves. Cut melon pieces into long ribbons.

Remove the crust from your sourdough, cut into 2cm-thick slices and brush with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper.

Chargrill the sourdough slices on the barbeque to achieve a blackened effect and crispy outside. Tear the charred bread into bite-sized portions.

To assemble, smear dollops of ricotta onto the sourdough, then fold a slice of melon on top of each, followed by a slice of ham.

Option to finish with torn mint leaves, squeeze of lemon and a drizzle of olive oil.