Herself's Recipes

I love this dish! And it is painless to make, just dump everything in the crock pot and cook it on low. When it’s done, boil up some pasta to serve with it.

4 Chicken thighs
1 14oz can diced tomatoes
1 6oz can tomato paste
1 1/2 cups water

sliced mushrooms ( ~ 8oz container )
sliced peppers ( ~ 2 or 3 each )
sliced onions ( 1 large )

garlic, one clove grated. Easy on the garlic the chicken will add a lot of flavor and spices become much stronger cooked in a crockpot.

I put it all in the crock pot, put the lid about half closed and cook on low several hours until the chicken is falling off the bones.

Serve with cooked pasta and grated parmesan or romano cheese.

Cacciatore means ‘hunter’s style’. This dish originated in the mid 1400s in central Italy.

Often served as an appetizer in Italian restaurants we use this as a meal on hot summer nights. I’ve seen it served a hundred different ways. Some or all of the below items are combined to make a cold platter. Then everyone sitting down can take or not the parts he/she chooses.

Fresh cut tomatoes ( about an hour before serving sprinkle a tiny bit of salt on the tomatoes followed by a little olive oil, this will bring out the flavor more )

Sliced fresh mozzarella cheese layered over tomato slices

Roasted peppers ( Slice peppers really thin and coat with equal amounts of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, then slowly roast ~350 till cooked through. Red peppers work best )

Marinated mushrooms ( Slice fresh mushrooms and add 1/2 cup oil, 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar, 2 Tbsp fresh basil, 1 tsp minced garlic, 1 tsp spicy mustard — marinate overnight )

Cold cuts ( prosciutto, sopressata, corned beef, ham, leftover steak from the grill &c )

Sliced provolone cheese

Wine grapes

Sliced honey dew melon or cantaloupe wrapped in prosciutto

Assorted olives

Sliced red onion

Layer all or some subset of these on a platter which is layered with enough lettuce that people can add lettuce to their plates if desired.

Also put some oil and vinegar on the table as dressing.

Antipasto means – before the meal.