Cook's Illustrated

Quick and Easy Antipasti

Published May 1, 1996.

These six small dishes can be used as appetizers, cocktail snacks, or a light meal.

The Problem

Too often, appetizers require more work than they're worth.

The Goal

We wanted to create several easy dishes—interesting but not too filling—to be used as appetizers.

The Solution

The Italians have perfected appetizers—antipasti—inspiring us to look at Italian ingredients for dishes that can be used alone or together as appetizers, cocktail snacks, or to make a light meal with salad and pasta.

list of recipes
America's Test Kitchen

America’s Test Kitchen is a 2,500-square-foot kitchen located just outside of Boston. It is the home of Cook’s Country and Cook’s Illustrated magazines and is the workday destination for more than three dozen test cooks, editors, and cookware specialists. Our mission is to test recipes until we understand how and why they work and arrive at the best version. We also test kitchen equipment and supermarket ingredients in search of brands that offer the best value and performance. You can watch us work by tuning in to America’s Test Kitchen (www.americastestkitchen.com) on public television.