Grandma’s Antipasto Recipe

My Grandmother has always made delicious antipasto. This is kind of antipasto you see in jars, made of mixed vegetables and olives. You generally eat it on bread or crackers. Really terriffic.

Everyone loves her antipasto, but nobody knows how to make it. So, for Christmas I asked her to teach me. We just finished making it (approx 40 liters of the stuff). Turns out that it’s very easy to make.

Basically, the quantities listed here are guidelines. You can adjust to add more or less of what you like. The goal is to achieve a balance. All the veggies should be cut up so they are small and manageable (think small enough to go on a cracker). My grandma uses a serrator to cut the carrots, to get that corrugated pattern.

Approx:

• 7 cups fresh string beans, chopped.
• 7 cups diced onions, chopped.
• 7 cups carrot, diced a corrugated-serrator (you know, do create the wavey pattern).
• 7 cups celery, chopped. Use all of it, including the little root-bits.
• 1 head of cauliflower, chopped.
• 4 cups red peppers, diced.
• 2 cups green peppers, diced.
• 2 cups dill pickels, diced.

And:

• 5 x 10oz cans of sliced mushrooms in water.
• 2 jars sliced pitted, black kamamata olives.
• 2 jars pitted, whole green olives with pimentos.
• 5 cans tuna – can in oil or water. In oil will taste best. We used 3 cans with oil, and 2 with water (I think).
• 1 large/giant tin of anchovies. I think it was a 13oz can.
• 1 2lb bag of frozen peas.
• 3 jars of small pickled pearl onions (e.g., cocktail onions – make sure they are in salt with no sugar added).
• 4 tins of tomato paste.
• 1 hand-full of salt.
• 1 hand-full of pepper.
• 1 L of Corn Oil
• 1 L of white vinegar

Directions:

1. Clean and peel (where applicable) all the veggies the night before so they can dry.
2. Add oil, salt, pepper, and vinegar into a gigantic pot. Bring to a boil.
3. Add carrots. Let the boil recover, then boil for a few minutes.
4. Add celery and beans. Cover and let boil for a few minutes.
5. Add red peppers, green peppers. Cover and let boil for a few minutes.
6. Add cauliflower. Let boil a very short time.
7. Add the Tuna and Anchovy — add the liquid (water or oil) that they were packed in as well.
8. Add everything else: pearl onions, mushrooms, olives, tomato paste. At this stage you need to monitor the amount of liquid in the pot. The liquid level should be the same as the solids level. If not, then add some of the liquid that came with the olives or onions.
9. Cook for 1/2 hour, stirring constantly. Check to see if more salt or pepper is required.

The antipasto is now ready for bottling. Keep the mixture cooking on a low heat while you bottle. The antipasto has to go into the bottles hot, and then should be sealed up right away.

Wrap all the bottles up and keep them warm. As they cool they’ll seal (hopefully!).

Delicious!

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