Antipasti Salad and Ciabatta Bread Rolls

Antipasti Salad

Thursday 7th July 2011

Jeudi 7 Juillet 2011 ~ St Raoul

I have finally got sorted out after last night’s dinner party ~ the dishwasher is empty after three loads, and the cutlery and china has been carefully stored away! It was a WONDERFUL evening with good food and wine ans well as lively conversation………we sat outside well into the dark and turned the outdoor fairy lights on for the first time this summer, magical! The menu went down very well and I thought that the balance of tastes and textures of the food was just right! The table was set in a semi formal way ~ I put freshly picked white roses on the table and decided on a cream and green theme.

The set table for my summer dinner party

There are very little leftovers, a few beans and carrots and one slice of vanilla and butter peach upside down cake! We had our pre-dinner aperitif drinks outside and then came into to dine ~ the coffee and dessert was served outside again, once the sun had lost it’s intense heat. As we sat and chatted, one of my guests saw a shooting star ~ we see lots of shooting stars in this part of France, as the sky is free of light pollution and is so clear.

Home-made Ciabatta Bread Rolls just out of the oven and cooling

I served marinated olives, mini pimento and cheese toasts and duck and goose terrine with baguette slices for the aperitif nibbles ~ needless to say they all disappeared! Anyway, enough of that, I would like to share my Antipasti Salad and Ciabatta Bread Rolls recipes now……….these two would make a great combination for a summer lunch as well as a starter before a more formal meal; the bread rolls can be made ahead of time and popped in the freezer ~ just “refresh” them in a warm oven for a few minutes and they are just as good as the day they were baked.

Ciabatta Bread Rolls


Antipasti Salad


The Table!

Recipes:

Antipasti Salad

There are MANY ways of assembling an Antipasti Salad ~ this is JUST my idea as served last night; I loved the colours of this particular combination and the flavours were also amazing.

Ingredients for 6 people:

- 12 slices Parma ham, or other air dried ham such as Serrano or Bayonne

- 6 roasted red peppers, out of a jar (I used a 280g jar of roasted red peppers)

- 6 artichoke hearts, tinned (I used a 250g tin)

- 1 ball mozzarella cheese, cut into slices (I used 225g)

- 3 fresh tomatoes, sliced

- 12 Saucisson slices, or salami slices

- fresh basil leaves

- 6 caper berries

- Extra virgin olive oil

Simply arrange all of the ingredients in an attractive way on a large platter ~ I like to have the mozzarella cheese next to the tomatoes and basil leaves.

Drizzle the olive oil over the completed platter and serve straight away.

NB: I normally add olives too, but we had already had olives with our aperitifs, so I left them out!

Ciabatta Bread Rolls

Makes three loaves or 8 to 12 bread rolls

Ingredients:

~Ovenight preparation~
250g/9oz Italian type ’00′ bread flour
190ml/7fl oz water
15g/½oz yeast

~To finish the bread~
250g/9oz Italian type ’00′ bread flour
10g/½oz yeast
190ml/7fl oz water
12g/½oz salt

~Preparation method~
For the overnight preparation, mix the flour with the water in a large bowl and add the yeast. Whisk for three minutes and leave to rise overnight (or at least eight hours).

To finish the bread, add the remaining flour and yeast to the bread mixture and mix well.

Gradually add the rest of the water to the bread mixture. When nearly all of the water has been added, add the salt to the remaining water and mix together for a further five minutes, until a sticky dough is formed.

Transfer the dough into a large oiled bowl and leave to rise for one hour.

Transfer the dough to a heavily floured work surface and leave to rest for a further 30 minutes.

Preheat the oven to 240C/465F/Gas 8.

Cut the dough into three strips, and stretch them out to make long, flat ciabatta loaf shapes. (OR, into bread rolls – about 8 to 12)

Place onto a baking sheet lined with baking paper and leave for ten minutes.

Transfer the dough to the oven to bake for 25 minutes, or until risen and golden-brown.

Remove from the oven and transfer to a wire rack to cool.