Antipasti

Antipasti a great way to start any meal

Antipasti means "before meals". Antipasti could be thought of as "appetizers". It is classically the first course of an Italian meal, typically eaten with salamis and Parma ham alongside vegetable preserves.

In the north of Italy, antipasti consists mostly of salumi (cured ham and sausage) with preserved vegetables such as onions, peppers and artichoke hearts, as well as preserved mushrooms. Whereas in the south of Italy, antipasti consists mostly of preserved vegetables and fish.

This is a very simple first course to prepare but it is one that will be enjoyed by all your guests.

The easiest way of preparing the antipasti is to visit your local Italian delicatessen. There you can buy all the vegetable and mushroom preserves needed for the antipasti as well as the cured hams and salamis.

They will also slice the cured hams and salamis for you. All you have to do is display them at table. What could be easier?

To complete the antipasti, you must serve Italian bread and wine. Here is a simple antipasto dish for you to try called "Affettati Misti".

Serves: 4

Ingredients:

4 slices of mortadella
4 slices coppa
4 slices pancetta
4 slices prosciutto
8 slices salame
Vegetable preserves
Mushroom preserves
Italian bread

Method:

1. Arrange the slices of cured hams and salamis elegantly in a large platter.

2. Arrange a selection of vegetable and mushroom preserves in either a large pickle serving dish or in smaller individual dishes.

3. Roughly slice the Italian bread and serve in one or two bread baskets at table.

4. Serve the antipasti with a selection of Italian wines of your choice.

To discover more about Italian food visit the Italian Traditional Food webpage