Authentic Italian Cooking

Italian antipasto ideas

In Italy our traditional full menu begins with antipasto, different from north to south. Antipasto can also be called starter. It may be an assorted platter with a lot of tidbits made with fish, meat, eggs, vegetables, cheese, cereals depending on the circumstances or a smaller portion of a famous dish too.

  • Assorted antipasto platter ideas
  • Italian cold seafood appetizers
  • Italian cold meat appetizers
  • Italian cold vegetarian appetizers
  • Italian hot vegetarian
    antipasto ideas
  • Italian hot seafood antipasto ideas
  • Italian hot meat antipasto ideas

    How to serve Italian antipasto

    Italian cuisine is famous all over the world.
    In the next pages you'll be able to find a great variety of recipe ideas for assembling a classic Italian starter: assorted salami combined with pickles, bruschetta, crostini, panzerotti, marinated anchovies, clams, olives, artichokes in oil, Russian salad, seafood salad, carpaccio or other tasteful dishes suitable for your get-togethers if you want to astonish your guests.
    Recipes can be traditional or to belong to my original home cooking.
    Be sure: you'll know how to begin a lunch or a dinner party, Italy-style perfectly! :))
    If you have any problem, !

    Our tested recipes to assemble Italian entrees as follows

    Fishy, cold-served

    Boiled salt cod seasoned with olive oil and lemon juice

    The photo you see here is a great example of a cold seafood dish that you can actually serve warm too. In Italy we call it "Baccalà conzo" that is "conzo salt cod". I like a lot it because simple but tasty. In the page you'll be able to find recipe ideas with oysters, shrimp, other seafood ... and also hot cherry peppers stuffed with tuna in olive oil and anchovies.

    Meaty, cold-served

    Veal shank salad

    There is a great choice in this directory. Just think of ham or mortadella mousse, pate recipes, veal in tuna sauce, prosciutto and melon, aspic dishes and so on ...

    Veggie, hot-served

    cauliflower mini flan served as appetizers

    This directory is dedicated to vegetarians but not only to them. In fact, I often prepare vegetarian starters for my full menus when they are rich in courses and ingredients. In this case omelettes, mini flans, sliced savory cakes ... can be very useful!

    Regional and seasonal

    assorted antipasto platter for autumn

    In the photo you can see a typical assorted dish. The season is autumn as evidenced by radicchio and grapes. Many other proposals await you according to seasons and Italian regions!

    Fishy, hot-served

    Beccafico sardines served in a white platter, Sicilian recipe

    Hot seafood appetizers are really a lot. Shellfish soups (mussels, clams ...), stuffed sardines (sarde a beccafico), grilled scallops, bruschetta topped with fish, grilled specialties including cuttlefish ... the list is really long.

    Meaty, hot-served

    vegetables stuffed with sausage

    Among hot meat appetizers there are arancini because they have a meat heart, vegetables stuffed with sausage and tigelle or fried gnocco because they are served accompanied with cold cuts. Soon many other recipes.

    Veggie, cold-served

    hard-boiled eggs garnished with mayonnaise sauce

    We Italians are masters in garnishing boiled eggs, seasoning olives or fresh fruit, combining bread with tomatoes (panzanella), making ice-creams with vegetables and cheese ...