Best Michael Chiarellos Pickled Antipasto Recipes

CALABRESE ANTIPASTO

Steps:

• Place all of the prepared and drained vegetables in separate bowls and reserve their juices.
• In a large saucepan, combine ketchup, Worcestershire, horseradish, tomato sauce, tarragon vinegar, brown sugar, garlic, lemon juice, and cayenne. Bring to a simmer over medium heat. Season, to taste, with salt.
• Bring a large pot of water to a boil and salt it generously. Blanch the cauliflower for about 2 minutes; it should still be crisp. With a skimmer, transfer the florets to a tray to cool quickly. Repeat with the carrots and then with the celery, cooking them just long enough to remove their raw taste; they will be cooked more later. Add the white wine vinegar to the water and blanch the mushrooms for 1 minute (the vinegar will keep the mushrooms white). Drain and spread the mushrooms on a tray to cool quickly.
• Add the cauliflower, carrots, celery, and mushrooms to the sauce. Add the juices from the canned and jarred vegetables. Add the pepperoncini, olives, pickles, onions, and artichoke hearts and toss well.
• In sterilized canning jars, place 1 teaspoon tarragon vinegar (this will guarantee freshness). Load the sauced vegetables into the jar, using a wide-mouthed funnel to avoid a mess.
• In one of the large pans that you have used, add olive oil, tuna, and anchovies and mix well. Top each jar with some of the tuna mixture. Cover and refrigerate, or allow to cool on the counter before serving. This will keep in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.

ITALIAN RELISH TRAY

Steps:

• In a bowl, whisk together the olive oil. sherry vinegar, chili powder and parsley and toss to coat. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• Slice fennel into wedges and wash cherry tomatoes. Roll salami slices into batons.
• Drain all jarred ingredients well. Arrange all items as desired on a large platter. Serve slightly chilled or at room temperature with bread and/or crackers.

SUPER QUICK MINESTRONE

Steps:

• Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions until al dente. Drain and transfer the pasta to a baking sheet. Toss the pasta with a little olive oil to prevent sticking.
• In a large saucepan over medium heat, warm the chicken stock.
• In another large saucepan over high heat, heat 1/4 cup oil. When the oil is hot but not smoking, add the pancetta and cook until it begins to brown, 3 to 4 minutes, turning occasionally. Add the garlic and cook until it begins to brown, about 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Lower the heat to medium and add the onions, celery, and carrots.
• Cook until the vegetables are soft, 8 to 10 minutes, stirring occasionally to prevent browning. Add the chopped herbs. Raise the heat to high. Add the beans, tomatoes, zucchini, and potatoes. Add the chicken stock and bring to a boil. Then bring it down to a simmer and cook until the potatoes are tender, 12 to 15 minutes, skimming any foam off the top of the soup. Season generously with pepper. Add salt, to taste. Just a few minutes before serving, add the cooked tubetti pasta. Serve warm with Parmesan and olive oil passed at the table.
• Cooking notes: Add the cooked pasta just before serving. If it sits in the soup too long, it develops a flabby texture. Tubetti (little hollow tubes) are the classic pasta for minestrone, but you could substitute another small shape of pasta.

MICHAEL CHIARELLO'S PICKLED ANTIPASTO

Steps:

• In a large saucepan, combine 1/2 cup of water with the tomato sauce, ketchup, lemon juice, olive oil, tarragon vinegar, Worcestershire sauce, horseradish, brown sugar and garlic.
• Add the cayenne pepper and season with salt. Bring to a boil over high heat, then simmer for 20 minutes.
• Transfer the marinade to a large bowl to cool.
• In a large saucepan of boiling salted water, cook the cauliflower until barely tender, about 2 minutes.
• Using a slotted spoon, transfer the cauliflower to a baking sheet to cool.
• Bring the water back to a boil.
• Add the carrots and celery, blanch for 2 minutes and transfer to the baking sheet to cool.
• Add the white wine vinegar to the saucepan and return to a boil.
• Add the mushrooms, simmer for 1 minute and drain well; transfer to the other vegetables and let cool.
• Add all of the cooled vegetables to the marinade, then add the remaining ingredients.
• Toss gently but thoroughly, cover and refrigerate overnight.
• MAKE AHEAD The recipe can be refrigerated for up to 2 weeks.