Italian theme dinner party

[littlerose12345]

Looking for inspiration, what would you love to eat at an Italian theme dinner party?

Chicken cacciatore (baked chicken pieces in a herbs tomato ragu) and polenta with tonnes of butter and cheese in.

Proper homemade tiramisu with real coffee and a healthy amount of alcohol in. Made with marscapone and eggs and none of the cream that's in the shop bought ones.

Sadly I can have neither of these as am dairy free thanks to refluxy DD. So I am living life vicariously through your dinner party.

Wild mushroom risotto
Italian leaves with ex v oo and Belazu balsamic
Italian cheeses eg Dolcelatte etc with Bolli crackers, figs, Muscat grapes
Baci
Espresso

And shedloads of Barolo

Yummmmmmm. Let me know what time you want me.

Italian dinners have a slightly different course structure to UK dinners, so if you are following the Italian or the UK pattern would influence what dishes you cooked.

Mine would be v 70s and totally inauthentic.

• avocado, mozarella, tomato salad. V ripe tomatoes, nice olive oil and fresh basil
• carbonara or risotto. Plenty of pancetta and cheese basically.
• tiramisu (as poster above said, too much booze and caffeine. Also genuine Italian fingers.)

Prosciutto and melon
Tagliatelle with wild boar ragu
Rabbit, polenta and vegetables
Fruit
Cheeses

Really good tomatoes and burratta or figs and goats cheese depending on time of year, followed by spaghetti Vongole.

The starter would have been so delicious and plentiful that I wouldn't do a main course.

We were in southern Italy in the summer & meals were something I never fully understood.
There seems to be antipasti, then a first main course which was pasta then the second main which was meat or fish with more pasta then there were pizzas. We never ordered every course - the house antipasti was enough.
I'd love to know how to make that type of food tho - was all so fresh & simple

All baout the quality.

To start a few little dishes - maybe some really good olives, some bresola or San Daniele ham, chargrilled atichokes, bit of ciabatta.

Main: homemade ravioli with pumpkin and sage or baked seabass and salsa verde or pappardelle with cavolo nero (or other simple pasta dish)

Dessert: a few italian cheeses or a lemon polenta (not traditional I know)cake or some Vin santo and a Cantucci biscuit