Starters for parties: cheeses and cured meats

Charcuterie starters, as well as the great classics

The appetizer is that moment when you need to fill the table with color, inviting food and mini portions to prevent binges caused by the grip of hunger from compromising the subsequent courses rich in calories and equally tasty.

The idea of ​​putting a platter of particular cured meats and cheeses on the table, perhaps with DOP Italian cured meats, becomes a perfect compromise to enrich the table, taste authentic flavors and avoid filling up on appetizers while leaving out more substantial dishes. We therefore need a valid compromise that brings together taste, flavor and manages to color the table.

The MAXI Christmas Gift Box is the perfect tool to solve the food and wine side, but you need to proceed in order.

Typical PGI cured meats, give me an example

Every Italian region boasts at least one product that falls into the PDO or PGI cured meat category. In fact, the Bel Paese enjoys particular and unique conditions that allow certain territories to maintain traditions intact and offer selected products in perfect line with the specifications.

Some examples that you need to try at least once in your life are:

• Colonnata lard from Tuscany or flavored lard
• Mortadella from Bologna or Capitelli
• Parma's ham
• Salami from Varzi Lombardy or local salami

And these are just some of the products that we can bring to the table, perhaps accompanied by equally sought-after cheeses with the DOP or IGP mark that allow you to start a meal in style without too many excesses.

Recipes with cured meats, in addition to the classic cutting board

The cold cuts and cheese platter represents a great classic which, in addition to slices of bread or breadsticks, manages to complete the course without too much preparation. When creativity reigns supreme and you want to enrich the table in visual terms, you can opt for some recipes with quick and easy cured meats to add a lively and creative touch.

The easiest idea is to use slices of PGI salami and fold them like an accordion, add a stoned olive in the center and you'll get a very nice bow. Cooked ham becomes the light roll thanks to the addition of a soft cheese which is the perfect ally in PGI sausages.

Other solutions transform sausages into flans, savory pies and super tasty appetizers!

How to prepare the cold cuts and cheese platter

The ideas in terms of Italian cured meats and cheeses with the DOP and IGP markings contain a micro world capable of stimulating the imagination to create delicious recipes and enrich the table.

To perform at its best, the platter of cured meats and cheeses must be rich and well-calibrated, the etiquette tells some secrets and little gems that resolve doubts and fears. The order dictated by the famous volume decrees the following order: salami, bresaola, raw ham, mortadella and bacon. A small portion of cheese must be placed above or next to each slice to match the cured meat.

Below, however, it is necessary - where the choice also includes fruit - to place small morsels of fruit always in line with the cured meat and cheese. Subsequently the attention shifts towards the wine without neglecting the arrangement of the cutlery, in short, the procedure is rather complex but guarantees a result bordering on perfection!

The idea of ​​Carne Genuina: the tasting box

The choice of elements to be placed on the cold cuts and cheese platter is quite wide and, to solve the enigma, Carne Genuina has developed a particular box that allows you to find the perfect combinations capable of enriching the table thanks to the genuine taste.

The idea has two possible variations:

• Classic Christmas Gift Box containing a salami, a bottle of wine, some cheese and a ragù.
• MAXI Christmas Gift Box containing a salami, a bottle of wine, some cheese, a ragù, a cotechino and another cheese.

All the products offered are the result of a careful and accurate analysis which begins with the breeding and cultivation method and then translates into healthy, traditional products and - where possible - with the DOP and IGP marking.

The boxes are a perfect solution and suitable for different occasions which, especially during the Christmas period, find a wide margin of use as they represent an excellent gift capable of combining the pleasure of the table with the desire for tradition which never before appears in the minds of people more than in December. many.

At Christmas you want: cured meats and typical products

A famous song states that "at Christmas you can" but, if the role you play is that of cook then you necessarily need to replace the verb and transform it into do you want. Tradition is the key element that best combines a slice of mortadella with michetta, salami with loaf, Parmesan with baskets cooked in the oven, gorgonzola with breadsticks, one could go on forever.

What stands out most is the desire to put on the table something that reminds us of grandmother's table where, with all the relatives dressed in their Sunday best, we started eating when the sun was high in the sky and ended the day with bingo - beans counting numbers, and some change as a prize.

Those were good times. Well, a slice of local salami can reawaken so many memories, you need to get to work and prepare the most traditional platter of cold cuts and cheeses there is!