Skip to main content
Free delivery from CHF 150
Gourmethica

The aperitivoboard.

A few Italian specialities to compose and share.

15 min6-8 servings

Prep 15 min · No cook

Tested in Teresa's kitchen
Go to the recipeThe products in this recipe
Italian aperitivo board — Picciottelli, olive paste and Madre Terra antipasti

The board components

For 6-8 servings

  • 1 pack of Picciottelli
  • 1 jar of black olive pastePasta di Olive Nere
  • A bowl of mixed olivesGreen and black
  • A wedge of pecorinoIn shards
  • 4-6 fresh figsSplit in two, or grapes depending on the season
  • Extra virgin olive oil, to finish
  • A few sprigs of fresh thyme or rosemaryTo garnish
Find our products

The styling, step by step

6 steps, simply.

  1. Anchor the board

    Anchor the board with the bowls. Set the olive paste in a small bowl and the mixed olives in another, spaced out across the board — they're the fixed points everything else arranges itself around.

  2. Fan out the Picciottelli

    Fan out the Picciottelli. Lay them in a fan or stand them upright in a tall glass, in one corner of the board, and gather some into a little pile near the olive paste bowl: they give height, everyone knows where to find them, and the crunch within reach of the creamy is where the best bites are made.

  3. Crunch near the creamy

    Bring the crunch to the creamy. Always keep a few Picciottelli beside the olive paste bowl, ready to dip — it's the board's central move.

  4. Cheese and fruit

    Add the cheese and the fruit. Set the pecorino shards on one side, the split figs on the other. The briny and the sweet at the two ends: you want the eye to see the balance before the hand chooses.

  5. Thread of oil

    Finish with a thread of oil. Pour a thread of raw Madre Terra olive oil over the olive paste and the pecorino, and scatter thyme or rosemary.

  6. Leave room to breathe

    Leave room to breathe. Don't fill every inch — a board that breathes makes you want to dive in. Set it in the middle, and let everyone build their own bite.

The small details that make the difference.

A few pointers before you start.

What goes on an Italian aperitivo board?

Something crunchy, something creamy, something briny and a little sweet, chosen with care. On ours: the Picciottelli from Cotti in Fragranza for the crunch, the Madre Terra olive paste and the pecorino for the creamy and the briny, mixed olives, fresh figs for the sweet, and a thread of olive oil to tie it together. It all rides on the quality of each thing — it's a board, not a cooked dish: if every element is good, the whole is unforgettable.

How many Picciottelli should I plan for?

For 6-8 people, count a pack of Picciottelli, plus bread if you add it. You always plan a little too much: at the aperitivo the crunch disappears fast, especially next to a bowl of olive paste. Keep an unopened reserve pack on hand, to open if the board empties.

Can I prepare the board ahead?

Prepare the bowls of olive paste and olives a little ahead, yes, and shard the pecorino. But compose the board just before serving, and open the Picciottelli only at the last minute so they stay crisp. Bring the olive pastes and the cheese to room temperature before serving — the flavour opens up better. The thread of oil and the herbs, always at the last moment.

Good things, to start with.

In Italy the aperitivo isn't a dish, it's a moment — and the finest way to open it isn't to cook, but to assemble well. A board, a tagliere, set in the middle of the table: something crunchy, something creamy, something briny, a little sweet, and plenty to pick at while the glasses are filled. Nothing is cooked — it all rides on what comes before, on the choice of each thing. And that's exactly where a board is won or lost: on the quality of what you put on it.

At the heart of ours, two producers. The Cotti in Fragranza Picciottelli — their savoury thyme crackers, made with ancient Sicilian wheat and olive oil, oven-baked and never fried — come from a bakery unlike any other: in Palermo, young people from the Malaspina juvenile institute learn a trade by making them. And the Madre Terra olive paste, made from whole olives by the Apulian organic cooperative, set in a bowl to dip them into. Around them you compose: a wedge of pecorino, mixed olives, fresh figs split in two, a thread of raw Madre Terra olive oil. Nothing complicated — abundance here isn't quantity, it's balance. Everyone builds their own bite, and the evening begins.

La Lettre

The panettoni's arrival, and one recipe a month.

Confirmation by email, one-click unsubscribe. La Lettre is written in French, German and Italian: you'll receive it in French.

All the recipes

Gourmethica · The aperitivo board · gourmethica.ch/en/recettes/planche-aperitif-italienne