Antipasti Salad

  Antipasti Salad

This Antipasti Salad is a delicious mix of flavors and textures, perfect for sharing with friends! It's got fresh veggies, cured meats, cheeses, and a tangy dressing. You can throw in mixed greens, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, olives, feta cheese, and hard-boiled eggs. The dressing is super simple, too—just olive oil, red wine vinegar, and Dijon mustard. Just mix everything up, drizzle the dressing, and you're good to go. Feel free to tweak the ingredients to your liking!😋

Ingredients

• 2 cups of mixed green salad (like arugula, romaine, or spinach)
• 1 cup cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 cup of cucumber slices
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 cup black and green olives
• 1/2 cup roasted red peppers, sliced (optional)
• 1/2 cup pepperoncini or banana pepper rings
• 1/2 cup cubed feta cheese or fresh mozzarella balls
• 1/4 cup Parmesan shavings (for garnish)
• 6-8 slices of cured meat (like salami, prosciutto, or mortadella), rolled
• 2 hard-boiled eggs, quartered
• Fresh basil leaves (for garnish)

Dressing

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 teaspoon of Dijon mustard
• 1 clove garlic, minced
• 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
• Salt and black pepper to taste

Instructions

1. Prepare the dressing: In a small bowl, whisk together olive oil, red wine vinegar, Dijon mustard, garlic, oregano, salt, and pepper. Set aside.
2. To assemble the salad, layer the salad greens, cherry tomatoes, cucumbers, and red onions in a large serving bowl or platter.
3. Arrange the rolled cured meats, feta cheese cubes, olives, and pepper rings on top of the greens. If using, tuck in hard-boiled egg quarters and roasted red peppers.
4. Drizzle the dressing: Pour the prepared dressing over the salad just before serving. Toss gently or let guests serve themselves.
5. Garnish: Add Parmesan shavings and fresh basil leaves for an elegant touch.

Special Note 

You can always adjust the ingredients to suit your preferences—perhaps adding artichoke hearts, marinated mushrooms, or even croutons for extra crunch. Bon appétit! Let me know if you'd like a variation or help with a different recipe.

Tandoori Garbanzo Bean Potato Salad

Fragrant, fresh and full of flavor.  Here’s a salad with a tangy/spicy mixture of Tandoori seasonings with potatoes and garbanzo beans. Fresh mint and parsley complements the Tandoori seasonings. If you love Indian spices you will love this potato salad. Serve it with chicken, steak, pork ribs or your favorite seafood.  It’s an elegant side dish.

Servings: 6 - 8    cook time: 5 minutes      Prep time: 30 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 pounds medium red-skinned potatoes (about 5) peeled and cut into bite sizes
• 1 15oz can garbanzo beans, rinsed and drain
• 3 hard-boiled egg, diced
• ½ cup red onion, finely diced
• 2 cloves garlic minced
• 1 teaspoon celery seeds
• 3 tablespoons fresh chopped parsley (hold little for garnish)
• 2 tablespoons fresh chopped mint (hold a little to combine with parsley for garnish)
• Salt and pepper to taste
• 1 teaspoon red pepper flakes for garnish

Dressing

• 2 tablespoons Rice Vinegar
• ½ cup Greek yogurt
• ½ cup mayonnaise
• 2 teaspoons hot mustard
• 2 tablespoons Agave Nectar
• 4 tablespoons Tandoori Spice Seasoning  (see note)

Note: How to make Tandoori Spice seasoning

(2) Teaspoons of each combine together and you may store in a plastic container to use on meats as well.

1. Paprika
2. Cumin
3. Coriander
4. Sea Salt
5. Cinnamon
6. Black Pepper
7. Ground Ginger
8. Nutmeg
9. Cayenne pepper
10. Curry powder

 Directions

1. Cook the potatoes in a large pan of boiling salt water for 5 minutes, or until just tender (pierce potatoes with a small sharp knife, if comes away easily the potatoes are ready).  Drain and cool completely.

2. In a medium bowl make dressing, combine rice vinegar, Greek yogurt, mayonnaise, and mustard.  Mix well then add agave nectar and tandoori spice seasoning.  Blend and set aside.

3. Once the potatoes have cooled, place them in a large bowl and add  garbanzo beans, red onions, garlic, celery seeds, diced eggs, fresh parsley and mint, reserving a little for garnishing.  Let stand for about 5 minutes.

4. Pour dressing over salad and toss gently to combine, without breaking the potatoes. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Garnish with red pepper flakes, parsley and mint.  Refrigerate until ready to serve.