Cooking Nice

A bridal shower should be fun and relaxing for the bride, but this doesn’t mean it can’t be enjoyable for the hostesses too. It is possible to plan a bridal shower that doesn’t require much effort but appears elegant and elaborate.

One way to do this is to simplify the bridal shower food. Rather than providing a full meal for guests, why not have a variety of Italian appetizers? They are filling, offer guests variation in food choices, and they are easy to eat, since they don’t require sitting down with a fork and knife. Paired with an assortment of wines and arranged on nice serving dishes, these Italian appetizers can make a stylish and tasty statement.

An appetizer, or antipasto, that’s always a winner is bruschetta. Thanks to Volpi Foods, the oldest and most prestigious authentic Italian meat manufacturer in America, making bruschetta is easier – and tastier – than ever. Volpi produces Italian traditional rotola, which is thinly sliced prosciutto hand-rolled in whole milk mozzarella. One particularly crowd-pleasing bruschetta recipe uses Volpi’s Basil Rotola, which includes fresh basil leaves among the layers of mozzarella and prosciutto.

First, pre-heat the broiler on low. Take one loaf of French bread, and cut vertical slices about one half inch thick. Put the bread slices on a cookie sheet, then place in the broiler to lightly toast. After the bread is toasted, spread a thin layer of basil pesto on top of each slice. Cut one package of Volpi Basil Rotola into slices about 1/4 inch thick, and then place one slice on top of each piece of bread. If you’d like the cheese to be more melted, add the pesto and rotola slices to the bread slices before toasting them.

Volpi Rotola gives the Italian traditional bruschetta recipe a modern twist, saving time in the kitchen and making an impressive addition to any party menu. The mozzarella and prosciutto combined with the basil, garlic and pine nuts in the pesto creates a mouth-watering and multi-faceted flavor that will have your guests coming back for more. And, no bridal shower is complete without good drinks. Pair the bruschetta with dry sparkling wine or Pinot Grigio.

You can even slice and serve Volpi Rotola as an Italian appetizer in itself. Plus, it comes in other variations such as Sun Dried Tomato, Hot Salami and Hot Capocolla. All you have to do is arrange the rotola slices with some crackers and olives for an appealing antipasto platter.

You don’t need to be a chef to prepare gourmet bridal shower food, and you certainly don’t need to hire an expensive caterer.   Delight your guests – and the bride – with Italian appetizers that are easy to make and impressive to serve.