Antipasto is the first course of a traditional Italian meal. It can be cold or hot and in Italy is often just one dish, like an appetizer. Antipasti misti, an array of shared dishes (like tapas or mezze) can become a meal in itself, a wonderful way to graze, drink and enjoy the company of friends and family. Here are my favourite antipasto recipes.
Scarole di Natale Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Southern Italian cooking class! I was introduced to this dish many years ago by the Nonna of a family I stayed with in Campania. They were from the north, but Nonna Filomena had learned to cook this local dish and was keen to share it […]
Rosemary Focaccia Join my food & wine tour to Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! Authentic focaccia is made with a generous amount of olive oil (see video below). Plenty of oil ensures your focaccia is moist and rich. Once you’ve mastered a basic focaccia recipe you can start having fun with toppings. Most […]
Onion Focaccia Join my food & wine tour to Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! Ligurian restaurateur Lucio Galletto makes the most delicious focaccia I’ve tasted (see video below), so my recipe is inspired by his and uses plenty of delicate Ligurian-style olive oil. Lucio calls focaccia ‘Liguria’s answer to pizza’ and I see […]
Olive Focaccia Join my food & wine tour to Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! My focaccia recipe is inspired by Ligurian restaurateur Lucio Galletto, who uses more water and oil in his recipe than most I’ve seen (see video below). Liguria is famous for the tiny, tasty Taggiasche olives that make the most […]
Baked Stuffed Zucchini Flowers Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Ligurian cooking class! Colourful zucchini flowers are one of my favourite vegetables – especially baked with an aromatic cheesy stuffing. The creamy spreadable marinated cheese known as ‘Persian fetta’ has very little to do with Greek feta or Persia, but it is delicious and […]
Primo Sale Cheese (Ricotta-Style) Like this recipe? You’ll love my online Italian cooking class inspired by Giovanni Pilu! Primo sale is a fresh Italian cheese, sometimes aged for a few weeks, sometimes resembling ricotta or cottage cheese. Traditionally it’s made from sheep milk though some versions today use cow milk or a mixture of cow, […]
Piadina, Stracciatella, Figs & Balsamic Vinegar Learn to Make Piadina at Casa Artusi in Romagna on my Small Group Italian Food & Wine Tour In Emilia-Romagna the flatbread Piadina Romagnola (plural: Piadine Romagnole) is often served with the local cream cheese squacquerone. In Australia I like to use the creamy stracciatella from Vannella Cheese, it […]
Piadina Romagnola Learn to Make Piadina at Casa Artusi in Romagna on my Small Group Italian Food & Wine Tour Everywhere you go in Romagna, you’re served this flatbread. I was taught to make Piadina Romagnola by a local lady at Casa Artusi cooking school, dedicated to the work of Italy’s most famous gastronome Pellegrino […]
Melanzane Grigliate Join my food & wine tour to Southern Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! Eggplant is like a sponge and soaks up an incredible amount of oil, so I prefer to brush it with oil and bake or grill it rather than fry it. If you have the barbecue fired up, you […]
Peperoni in Padella Join my food & wine tour to Italy to discover more Italian regional specialties! I was taught to make this braised capsicum dish by a boyfriend’s Neapolitan mother many years ago, and it’s still one of my favourites. Peperoni in padella simply means ‘peppers in the pan’ and the result is quite […]
