Every year for the holidays, my friends and I gift each other with homemade treats. Suzanne bakes amazing cookies and sweets, I make jam and granola and my friend Marie presents us with jars of homemade antipasto. Normally when I think of antipasto, I think of thin slices of cured meats and aged cheeses served with brined vegetables and crusty bread. Marie's antipasto is based on a classic
Calabrese recipe of olives, pickles, lightly pickled vegetables and canned tuna suspended in a tomatoey sauce and served on crackers or toast. The first time my husband and I opened one of Marie's jars of antipasto, it disappeared in about 30 minutes.
Marie got this recipe from her Italian American mother, Mary Polino, otherwise known as Big Mar. Big Mar is a 97 year old firecracker and she looms large in the lives of Marie and her four siblings. Last year, Marie invited the bitchin in the kitchen gals over to Big Mar's house to make a swinging batch of antipasto, but Big Mar took a bit of a tumble and we had to postpone. At 97, she was no longer able to stay in her two-story home and after her release from the hospital, she moved to an independent living facility just a few miles from Marie's home. Luckily, there's a well equipped activity room with a full kitchen, so on a chilly Saturday afternoon I met Marie and Big Mar at The Residence of Whitehall to make this unusual and delicious dish.
BIG MAR'S ANTIPASTO
3 cans small black olives
3 10 oz jars of small green olives, the ones with pimentos
2 quarts small sour pickles, cut into bite sized chunks
2 large carrots, sliced thinly
3 stalks of celery, sliced thinly
1 large cauliflower, cut into bite sized florets
2 bags frozen pearl onions
2 lbs button mushrooms, cut into chunks
6 cans good quality tuna packed in oil
2 20 oz bottles of ketchup
2 quarts tomato juice
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup olive oil
2 quarts water
2 cups white vinegar
Now, this recipe makes a crap ton of antipasto. I brought a dozen wide mouth pint jars, Marie had another dozen standing by and we expected to fill them all. Feel free to cut the proportions if you don't have the patience for mass antipasto production. In preparation for the task ahead, Marie had cut all the veggies into bite sized pieces and by the time I arrived, she and Big Mar were in the activity room getting things ready. There was a large pot with water and vinegar on the stove over medium heat. Each veg has to be cooked separately because they all cook at different rates. I started opening cans of olives, draining them and dumping them into a large roasting pan while Marie cooked the vegetables one by one in the lightly simmering brine, starting with the carrots and ending with the mushrooms.
Each veggie cooked for 8 to 10 minutes, some more or less, until they were slightly soft and had taken on the vinegar flavor. Marie and Big Mar tasted each veggie to make sure they were cooked properly and we reserved the pickling liquid to thin the sauce if we needed to. We added all the ingredients to the pan, saving the tuna for last, and once everyone was in the pool we mixed gently with our hands. I kind of like the tuna to remain a little chunky, but the antipasto should be mixed well and the the sauce should be liquid enough to just cover everything. If its too thin, add enough of the vinegar brine to cover the veggies.
According to the recipe, the antipasto should sit at room temperature for five hours before its jarred, but we didn't have that kind of time. However, it was St. Patrick's Day weekend and the folks at the Residence at Whitehall had some snacks, entertainment and adult beverages for their residents. We went down to the dining room to discover Pittsburgh mainstay
Mikey Dee and his drummer playing all kinds of fun singalongs and telling bad jokes. We had so much fun, Marie and I, enjoying mudslides and silliness with Big Mar and her neighbors.
An hour later we were back in the kitchen getting jars and lids ready. As we ladled antipasto into jars, Big Mar wiped the tops and put the lids on and when we were done there were 22 glorious jars of pickled veggie heaven waiting to be processed. The last jar was only half full and that was the one I opened when I got back home that evening. Jason and I enjoyed our antipasto on a toasted baguette and it was perfect with a little lemon squeezed over the top.
My own 95 year old dad had a fall last year as well and he relocated a couple months ago from Texas up to Pittsburgh to a facility just three miles from my house. Marie and I are going through the same experiences with our aging parents and we both recognize how important it is to spend quality time with them while we can. It was an honor to spend the day cooking with Marie and getting to know her lovely, hilarious mom and every time I eat this tasty treat, I will think of Big Mar.
