A tradition in my family that makes an appearance every holiday is antipasto. The tradition started when my great grandmother came to America from Italy. She would carefully design a large tray of assorted meats, cheeses, olives peppers and other cold appetizers to pick on before the hot meal was served. Fortunately, the tradition was passed down through the generations. Antipasto is honestly my favorite part about holidays, more than any of the other food that is made! My grandma still purchases all of the ingredients needed to make the antipasto including: salami, provolone cheese, roasted peppers (sometimes we make them fresh ourselves), eggs (to hard boil), marinated mushroom and artichokes, and olives.

I woke up Thanksgiving morning very excited to help my mom prepare the antipasto, since I haven’t had it since the last holiday we celebrated, which was Easter. The antipasto is designed in multiple layers, which my mom takes very seriously. It starts with rolling pieces of salami and placing them along the outer edges of an oval shaped plate. After all the salami is rolled, provolone cheese, cut into small pieces, is placed in between two salami rolls. Next, roasted peppers are cut into slivers and placed in the space the cheese created. Whatever pieces are too small or do not meet mom’s approval are thrown in the middle of the plate to be eaten later. Peeled and cut hard boiled eggs are placed on top of the peppers. Then, in rings, the mushrooms and artichokes are placed, moving in towards the center of the plate. Finally, olives are stacked up in the middle. I used to get in trouble when I was younger for “helping out” because I would start to eat the salami and olives before they even reached the plate! To complete the dish, the juices from the marinated mushrooms and artichokes are poured over the whole antipasto. The plate is then covered and placed in the fridge to marinate before we eat.

Both my mom and I prefer the leftovers to the real dish. When we finish eating the antipasto course, there is always so much left over! My mom carefully spoons the remaining items, along with the marinade, into a container. That container then goes in the fridge to get picked on for the next week or so. As unappetizing as this may sound, I would get up in the morning and that would be the first thing I would look to eat! Delicious!

I am happy that my family incorporates our Italian culture into all of the holidays that we celebrate. I believe that it enhances every holiday we celebrate, in addition to being with family, of course. It is a tradition I look forward to preparing and eating each holiday!