Meals should not be brief. We like to linger at the table, sneaking cold potatoes with our fingers and refilling our wine glasses and talking and talking and talking. But recipes? Those can be brief—and maybe they should be, letting the ingredients or the technique speak the loudest. Thick, buttery salad dressing. Light biscuits easy enough to to make any morning of the week. Super creamy ice cream that's no-churn to boot. For these 23 recipes, the magic is in their simplicity: They each have only 3 ingredients or fewer.
One ingredient:
The Kitchn's One-Ingredient Ice Cream by Genius Recipes
More: One-ingredient ice cream can be made with more than just bananas.
Sugarfree Grape Jam (Scrucchiata) by Emiko
Two ingredients:
Homemade Crème Fraîche by A Cozy Kitchen
Hervé This' Chocolate Mousse by Genius Recipes
Brown Butter Tomatoes by Amanda Hesser
Cookies and Cream Bars by Sarah Jampel
Everyday Avocado Dressing by Jessie Snyder | Faring Well
King Arthur Flour's Never-Fail Biscuits by Genius Recipes
Torrone Siciliano (Italian Almond Brittle) by Emiko
Carlo Middione's Polenta Facile by Genius Recipes
Three ingredients:
Peachy Buttermilk Sherbet by Alice Medrich
Torrone Sardo (Sardinian Nougat) by Emiko
Jennie Cook's Zucchini Butter by Genius Recipes
Brigadeiro (The Favorite Brazilian Sweet) by My Sweet Brigadeiro
Homemade Frozen Yogurt by Sarah Jampel
Calabrian Walnut Cake (Torta di Noci) by Emiko
Dan Leader's 4-Hour Baguette by Genius Recipes
Pretzel Shortbread Cookies by molly yeh
Rose Levy Beranbaum's Chocolate Oblivion Truffle Torte by Genius Recipes
Arrosticini (Barbecued Lamb Skewers) by Emiko
Marcella Hazan's Tomato Sauce with Onion and Butter by Genius Recipes
Watermelon Pudding (Gelo d'Anguria) by Emiko
This story originally ran September 4, 2016.
Have you found any magic 3-ingredients-or-fewer recipes? Let us know in the comments!
Written by: Caroline Lange
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