Every holiday whether Christmas or any other, its the same question (among many of course), “What will be on the menu?”. If you are taking part of the whole cooking and planning ritual, but don’t know what to make, I’ve listed a few items below to consider, especially if looking for a Italian theme.
Most of these if not all are pulled directly from this site which has allowed me to post many simple Italian recipes over the years.
I’ve had some great food experiences with cooking holiday meals, and I’ve had some bad ones too… such as this past Thanksgiving where we had the most dry and rubbery Turkey ever, but that’s another post.
So what I’ve decided to do is list a few of my favorite recipes that I’ve used on special occasions – not just Christmas.
1. Mediterranean Roasted Chicken Recipe
This recipe uses a whole chicken, basic ingredients such as green olives, prunes, olive oil, garlic, bay leaf, honey, etc. To sum up in one word… pure Mediterranean!
One of the biggest most common problems or annoyances I have with roasting chicken is that it always seems to smell better than it tastes. I feel like it is very easy to have a bland tasting chicken, and that’s the last thing you want to serve for a special dinner (or any dinner).
This recipe’s ingredients not only complement each other, but ends up creating a sauce in the pan that can be used to pour on top of the served chicken pieces. It is also the type of recipe that still tastes great if not even better when used as left overs.
Why so great? Because this recipe has two major things going for it… saltiness and sweetness. The olives give it the saltiness which brings out more flavor and the honey and apple cider vinegar bring out a tangy sweetness that when all baked together creates a beautiful balance of flavors.
2. Anti-pasto with artichokes Recipe
Here is one of my very early recipes from 2009!! I can’t believe its been so long. This Italian antipasto platter is great b/c not only is it easy, it can be made in advance earlier in the day. You can use the measurements I provide or adjust to your own liking. Some people absolutely love garlic while others do not. It is also a nice appetizer that can be served with fresh Italian bread. Alternatively you can serve this as a side dish and will in fact compliment the above chicken recipe.
If you are serving this as an appetizer you can serve it alongside cheese and crackers, or a meat tray.
3. Stuffed Pasta Shells Recipe
Stuffed shells with ricotta and spinach is a great easy Italian recipe too! It is so simple it will impress everyone…. and the other nicety about this recipe is that it too can be prepared ahead of time. In fact, quite a bit of time in advance if you have a freezer to store it in.
Basically you make the inside mixture using the ricotta, spinach and seasonings. Boil the shells a bit to soften them up then stuff them with the mixture, layer them in a pan with good Italian pasta sauce, and bake them in the oven till done.
Keep in mind its okay to have multiple main dishes. In fact, this is typical in many cultures especially Italians. So although you can definitely do this recipe alone, don’t be bashful to use it in addition to a meat dish such as the chicken recipe above.
4. Ricotta Pie Recipe
A great Italian dessert! This recipe I remember I was hesitant to try as I had never heard of a ricotta pie. Short story made shorter, I loved it!
This recipe is fairly simple, but might be intimidating to anyone who isn’t used to baking at all as it does require whipping eggs into a froth like consistency. In addition you’ll need a Springform pan
This pie has a nice creamy texture and if I had to give it basic description I’d say it is like an Italian cheesecake! You’ll notice in the picture that I recommend strawberries, however any berries such as blueberries will do.
I wish you the best this Holiday and God Bless!
Liz
SimpleItaliancooking.com
Have a Happy and Wonderful Holiday looking forward to more Italian recipes …. Buono Natale e Buono Anno