Antipasti

[Corinna Dunne]

Rub a little olive oil on slices of bresaola, put some shards of parmesan and arugula (rocket) on top at one end and roll into a cylinder. These are easy to put together, taste great and work well as finger food. Prosciutto rolled around melon is also very good.

Edited October 19, 2006 by Corinna Dunne (log)

[ludja]

Rub a little olive oil on slices of bresaola, put some shards of parmesan and arugula (rocket) on top at one end and roll into a cylinder.  These are easy to put together, taste great and work well as finger food.  Prosciutto rolled around melon is also very good.

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I also like this flavor combination, Corinna.

A variation I've made (from "Cucina Rustica" by Kleinman and La Place) is to make make an arugula butter (softened butter mixed with finely chopped arugula). Spread this on a garlic rubbed, lightly toasted crostini and top with a thin slice of bresaola. (Bundnerfleish, German dry cured beef, is a good substitute if you don't have bresaola.)

Lots of options for crostini and bruschetta...

Another nice recipe from "Cucina Rustica" (a favorite book of mine) is to layer very thin slices of raw fennel over good canned sardines (drained). Sprinkle with fresh oregano, olive oil, red pepper flakes and lemon juice. Serve w/crusty bread.

Grilled raddichio is also delicious. Top with some olive oil and salt and pepper.

Another nice marinated vegetable mix is baby artichokes, mushrooms and pearl onions with lemon and olive oil.

[Marco_Polo]

Lots of options for crostini and bruschetta...

The classic Tuscan crostini is a dead easy-to-make spread made from chicken liver, anchovies, a little onion, some capers, a glass of red wine, a slosh of extra virgin olive oil, cooked down then coarsely processed to a grainy paste. I love to put this on crostini to pop in the oven and serve hot with a nice tumbler of simple Chianti. There was a farmhouse restaurant we used to go to in the heart of the Chianti Classico zone that served 'crostini in 16 modi' - any number of different toppings, a slice tomato and mozzarella; some chopped radicchio mixed with Tuscan oil; perhaps some fried salsicce with pecorino cheese; a slice of finocchiona; a salted anchovy or two; some peppery rocket; a smear of olive paste; some grilled peppers stewed in garlic and olive oil; or a dollop of stewed cavolo nero with olive oil and lemon juice. Anything at all, really, whatever is available and in season.

GG, bagna caôda is a classic antipasto of Piedmont's Le Langhe, served not only as a bubbling hot pot to dip into with vegetables but spooned over grilled or roasted red peppers and served on a platter. Staying with the wonderful antipasti of Le Langhe, I also love carne cruda all'albesa - with shaving of tartufi bianchi d'Alba of course!

Marc

[mizducky]

A batch of homemade caponata is a thing of beauty, especially as an antipasto. There are a bazillion recipes out there; this one looks pretty typical.

[dario]

seafood cocktail - although it doesn't sound as imposing as "Trionfo di mare". It was a complete success, every single bit was eaten and hardly left any room for the rest of the food. It consisted of calamari cut in rings, prawns, clams and mussels briefly cooked in boiling water then seasoned with lemon, oil, salt and pepper. Simple but great!