Salads are often thought of as diet food. The truth is, a good salad that’s filled with delicious ingredients, makes a wonderful meal. I particularly enjoy hearty salads that leave me feeling satisfied and full.
Antipasto salad offers a variety of flavors and textures, along with a colorful blend of ingredients that is pleasing to both the taste buds and to the eye. This salad can be made quickly and stored, covered, in the refrigerator over night to chill. The key is to add the dressing just prior to serving.
Antipasto salad makes a great first course. It can stand alone as a meal, or precede a pasta course for an Italian meal that’ll have you wishing you were in Italy. And the best part—you can make it ahead of time or just prior to serving your meal. Either way it’s delicious.
The ingredients are available at most standard grocery stores. Have fun with this recipe and add other ingredients you enjoy that you feel will enhance the flavor. The only rule when making an antipasto salad is to make it tasty, make it colorful, and make it hearty.
For this recipe you will need:
1 jar (16 ounces) roasted sweet red pepper strips, drained
1/2 pound mozzarella cheese, cubed
1 cup grape tomatoes
1 jar (7-1/2 ounces) marinated artichoke hearts (do not drain juice)
1 jar (7 ounces) stuffed olives, drained
1 can (6 ounces) pitted ripe olives, drained
1 teaspoon dried basil
1 teaspoon dried parsley flakes
Pepper to taste
Toasted baguette slices
Lettuce leaves, torn
To Prepare This Recipe:
In a large bowl, combine the first nine ingredients; toss to coat. Cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours before serving to allow flavors to blend. Just before serving, add in the lettuce leaves (optional) and the baguette slices.
SERVINGS: 12
PREP TIME: 15 Min.
COOK TIME: 0
TOTAL TIME: 15 Min. (+ chill time)
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