Holiday Antipasto Spread

Naturally gluten-free, an Italian Antipasto is a show-stopping Italian appetizer spread with something for everyone! And it doesn't require a lot of cooking, just plating.

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Holiday Antipasto Spread

Savory, delicious and a crowd-pleaser!

Update December 2021…

A big Italian Antipasto is a Christmas Day tradition for us but it would make an equally fabulous New Years spread!

It’s a festive, savory spread with something for everyone and the best part is that it can be entirely prepped ahead and requires very little cooking!

Equally perfect for a small group or large gathering.

gluten free italian antipasto www.healthygffamily.com

Original post…

Ever since I was a child, Christmas dinner has always been an Italian affair including an antipasto course followed by a lasagna course.

There are hours of sitting around a big table with platters of fresh food and plenty of conversation.

And I’m going to let you on a secret… a big antipasto spread is actually one of the easiest ways to feed a crowd!

It looks super impressive but doesn’t involve a lot of cooking, just planning and plating.

antipasto spread gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

And it’s naturally gluten-free with something for everyone!

And antipasto course can included so many different things so feel free to customize to taste but this is what ours generally includes….

Roasted veggies,

Caprese Salad

A Centerpiece Platter of Italian tuna, caponata & more, cured meats,

and a recent add— Italian stuffed artichoke hearts! (These have become a fan favorite!)

Let’s start with the roasted veggies!

Roasted Veggies are the perfect addition to just about everything!

They’re festive, pretty, flavorful and delicious!

Plus, they are adaptable and always different based on taste, availability and the rest of the menu.

Since it’s served as part of an antipasto spread, we keep it simple with 5 different vegetables, and stick with a mix of veggies that work with well with the rest of the antipasto.

Roasted Vegetables veggies gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

This colorful plate of roasted vegetables also happened to include everyone’s favorites: eggplant, zucchini and summer squash, mushrooms, tomatoes and radicchio (which no one loves except me but I love the spiciness of it and love the color it adds to the platter).

And I love that roasted veggies taste great freshly roasted or days later, warm or room temp.

For Christmas, I roast everything except the tomatoes, the day before (Christmas Eve) and bring it to room temperature before serving.

So it’s really low maintenance on Christmas Day so I can enjoy the day more!

Pro tip: I like to roast the tomatoes the day I serve them because they stay warm and super tasty! Plus they take only 10 minutes to roast so it’s not a lot of effort.

antipasto spread gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

And you can plate them any way you like. I often use a round plate (like above) but last year I used an oval just to switch it up!

Plus if you have any fresh basil or parsley, remember to top the veggies with some!

antipasto spread roasted vegetablesgluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

The Antipasto Centerpiece Platter

The Antipasto course always includes a Centerpiece Platter which in our family includes:

Italian tuna

Eggplant Caponata

Marinated Artichokes (jarred)

Roasted Peppers (fresh or jarred)

several types of Olives

sometimes sundried tomatoes

and sometimes anchovies (my husband is the only who loves them!).

With the exception of the peppers which we roasted but you could use jarred, everything is ready-made so it’s just plating.

antipasto spread gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Our antipasto spread also includes  Caprese salad, which is just fresh mozzarella, fresh tomatoes and fresh basil.

I usually drizzle it with extra virgin olive oil too.

antipasto spread gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.comAnd my family loves a platter of Cured meats ( prosciutto, salami & provolone).

antipasto spread gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Finally, for the past two years we added Italian Stuffed Artichoke Hearts to the antipasto spread.

This recipe is from my husband’s aunt and it is the best addition!

They are crispy baked artichoke hearts stuffed with a mouth-watering mix of breadcrumbs, Parmesan, garlic, herbs, olive oil and lemon… a family recipe made gluten-free and out of this world!

And I love that it’s become a favorite of yours too!

Italian Stuffed Artichokes gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.heatlhygffamily.com

For the artichokes, I prepare them the day before, bring to room temperature for about 30-60 minutes, then bake them right before serving so they are warm and crispy.

This entire spread can be enjoyed as is or alongside your favorite bread or baguette.

It is allll so delicious… and, luckily for us, there are usually leftovers!  In fact, this is the only spread that may taste even better the second day!

And have fun making it! It always looks a little different… this is one from a few years ago…

antipasto spread gluten free #glutenfreerecipes www.healthygffamily.com

Hope you love it as much as we do!

Scroll down to see the recipe and leave a comment if you try.

Recipe

 
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Holiday Antipasto Spread

A show-stopping Italian appetizer spread with something for everyone! Adaptable to tastes, savory, delicious and naturally gluten-free!
Prep Time30 minutes
Cook Time30 minutes
Total Time1 hour
Course: Appetizer, Sides, Dinner
Cuisine: Vegan, Gluten-Free, Vegetarian
Servings: 12 -16 servings
Author: Healthy Gluten-free Family

Ingredients

Centerpiece Platter (adjust quantity according to how many you're serving and to tastes)

  • 3-4 Cans Italian tuna in olive oil we used yellowfin tuna
  • 4 Cans Caponata Eggplant Appetizer we used Cento cans but have also seen jars
  • 1 -2 Jars Marinated Artichokes
  • 2-3 Roasted red peppers see below for how to roast or use jarred roasted peppers
  • Black olives and/ or kalamata olives
  • Anchovies optional
  • Capers optional
  • Sun-dried Tomatoes optional
  • Fresh parsley and basil for garnish

Caprese salad

  • Fresh tomatoes
  • Fresh mozzarella
  • Fresh Basil
  • Extra virgin olive oil for drizzling

Roasted Veggies

  • 3-4 baby Eggplant sliced into 1/4 inch circles
  • 3-4 Zucchini and/ or Yellow Squash sliced into 1/8- 1/4 inch pieces
  • 2 packages fresh Mushrooms chopped
  • 1 head radicchio
  • 1 container cocktail size tomatoes halved (or 15-20 cherry tomatoes whole)
  • olive oil salt, pepper and dried basil for roasting
  • Fresh basil for garnish
  • Fresh parsley for garnish

Cured meats

  • 1/2 lb sliced provolone
  • 1/2 lb sliced salami
  • 1 lb sliced prosciutto

Instructions

Centerpiece Platter

  • Have fun assembling it. Here we left the tuna in the center, circled by the caponata, with artichokes and peppers on either side, and olives on both sides. There is no one way or right way.

Roasted Vegetables (for more details on roasting, see the linked recipe post)

  • Preheat oven to 400 degrees. One vegetable at a time, gently toss in olive oil.
  • Lay in a single layer on individual baking sheets. Sprinkle with salt and pepper. I like to also sprinkle the mushrooms with lots of basil. Bake for:
  • Tomatoes - 10 minutes or until tender.
  • Mushrooms - 25 minutes or until tender. (Alternatively, mushrooms can be sauteed in a saute pan over medium heat with some olive and minced garlic. I often find they are juicer this way)
  • Zucchini- 30 minutes or until tender and just starting to crisp.
  • Eggplant - 30 minutes or until tender and just starting to crisp.
  • Radicchio - 10 minutes or until wilted.
  • Store each vegetable separately in air tight containers in the refrigerator for several days.
  • Serve at room temperature or heat up in a skillet.

Roasted Peppers:

  • In preheated broiler, roast peppers for approximately 20-30 minutes, rotating once midway through, or until blackened. You want them black so that the skin peels off easier.
  • Remove from oven and place in a brown paper bag, seal and let cool for about 15 minutes. Then remove from bag and the blacked skins should peel off easily. Slice peppers into strips.

TIP: roast a day ahead of time, store separately in sealed containers in the refrigerator.

    Assemble: places all vegetables on a platter, separating by color, top with fresh herbs

      Assemble Cured Meats

      • Roll slices of each into cylinders and place on plate

      Caprese Salad

      • Place tomatoes and mozzarella on a plate in a pattern, drizzle with olive oil and garnish with lots of fresh basil.

      Italian Stuffed Artichoke Hearts

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