Proud Italian Cook

Antipasto Salad and a Tiramisu!

April 14, 2009 by Marie 43 Comments

I just wanted to share with you a couple of the highlights of our dinner this past Sunday. This antipasto salad is so good you just HAVE to make it for your next party! Although I’ve made many salads with fresh green beans in the past like here, I never quite put this combination together. I can thank my dear friend Stacey, of Stacey Snacks for giving me the inspiration!

I tweaked Stacey’s recipe slightly and used a combination of fresh green beans, that have been cooked and cooled down, just make sure they still have a little bite, sun-dried tomatoes, kalamata olives, marinated artichoke hearts, roasted red peppers, (I had some that I roasted myself,) garbanzo beans, chopped red onion, and strips of salami. The dressing is made with red wine vinegar and olive oil, salt, pepper, granulated garlic and oregano. Delicious at room temperature. This was so good I had the leftovers for breakfast the next day!

One of the things we had for dessert was this Limoncello Tiramisu, not a conventional tiramisu but perfect for spring. Fresh lemon curd, layered over limoncello soaked pound cake, followed by a mascarpone whipped cream. The flavor is out out of this world!

I’ve made this before but never put it in a trifle bowl, you will definitely hear lots of ooohs and aaahs when you bring it out of the frig! It makes for a great presentation, and best of all you make it the night before! Just click on the link for the recipe and double everything if you’re using a bowl like this. A good store bought pound cake is fine, I used 2 for this, slice it into 3rd’s lengthwise, cut strips to go around the edge of the bowl, and bigger pieces to layer up the middle.

Enjoy the rest of your week, and Buon Appetito!

43 Comments Filed Under: Desserts, Salads Tagged: antipasto salad, limoncello dessert

Party Sides!

April 9, 2009 by Marie 38 Comments

These salads are great side dishes for parties, they can be made ahead of time, served cold or at room temperature. Have you ever tried pearl couscous? Larger than regular couscous, they look like tiny little pasta pearls. Just cook according to directions , and cool down by rinsing with cold water.

Place in a bowl and toss with a fresh lemon and olive oil dressing. Here I added red onion, chopped cucumber, kalamata olives, grape tomatoes, fresh chopped parsley and basil. Salt & Pepper.

This carrot salad is a combination of finely chopped red onion, chopped parsley, garbanzo beans, and pine nuts, tossed in a red wine vinegar and olive oil dressing. The carrot strips were done with a vegetable peeler, this is raw not cooked. Salt & Pepper.

For this broccoli salad you’ll want to blanch the broccoli florets for about 3 minutes in boiling water, then cool down in ice water and drain. Add chopped red onion, kalamata olives, diced red pepper, and crumbled feta, add salt, pepper, and a little granulated garlic. Toss in some olive oil.

If you want, you could add lemon, but it tastes good with out it too.

Wishing you all a wonderful weekend filled with family, friends and food!

Marie

38 Comments Filed Under: Side Dishes Tagged: party salads, side dish

Zucchini Coins with Fettucine

April 5, 2009 by Marie 50 Comments

Good food doesn’t have to be expensive. In fact some of our favorite meals are very simple and not complicated at all. For a few dollars and less than 30 minutes you could have this on your table, and probably some leftovers for lunch the next day.

We enjoy meatless meals often. Sometimes I walk up to the meat counter and do a blank stare.

Been there, done that, did it! Don’t get me wrong, we’re meat eaters, but I have to say my favorite sections at the markets are the produce sections, I just love the variety, in fact that’s where I spend most of my money!

For this dish, cut your zucchini into coins and saute in olive oil till golden brown. Remove and drain on paper towels. In the meantime have your water boiling for your 1lb of pasta. In the same pan you sauteed your zucchini, add 2 shaved garlic cloves and about 1/4 cup of olive oil cook till light golden, also add some pine nuts till toasty. Add your cooked pasta and about 3/4 cup of reserved pasta water.