Italian Raw Vegetable Salad

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An Italian-style Tuscan vegetable salad is like a simple crudite platter. For an elegant appetizer, serve colorful fresh raw vegetables with good olive oil, salt and pepper.

This crunchy Italian salad is called pinzimonio in Tuscany. It’s such a simple salad that really show the essence of how Italians enjoy vegetables.

It might be too simple to believe (or even require a recipe!). It’s just fresh vegetables served raw, with nothing else but olive oil, salt and pepper.

My grandmother would put a similar salad on the table after the pasta and before the pastry, even in the dead of winter. She kept it very simple — usually it was a plate of trimmed celery stalks alongside a shallow dish of olive oil, salt and pepper.

It was a pretty humble snack, but I remember how I loved to dip the crunchy, cold celery into the saucer of oil, then into the salt and pepper, thinking how unlike a potato chip it was, but just as fun to eat.

This is the opposite of those raw “veggie” arrangements served on flimsy plastic trays along with a sloppy container of ranch dressing. I have memories of seeing those at potlucks and professional meet-and-greets and was never tempted.

You don’t need pristine farmer’s market or home-grown vegetables to assemble a raw vegetable plate.

But, one thing I insist: Grab that bottle of special extra-virgin olive oil you were planning to splurge on or were saving for something special. This is the time to use it!

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Italian Raw Vegetable Salad

Karen Tedesco

An Italian-style vegetable salad makes an easy, elegant appetizer. Serve colorful fresh raw vegetables with good olive oil, salt and pepper.

Print SaveSaved

5 from 2 community reviews

Prep Time 15 minutes mins

Total Time 15 minutes mins

Course Appetizers

Cuisine Italian

Servings 8 servings

Ingredients

• ▢ 2 pounds assorted crunchy fresh vegetables, such as carrots, colorful bell peppers, small zucchini or summer squash, cucumbers, snap peas, green beans, fennel or radishes
• ▢ Crushed ice
• ▢ Best quality extra-virgin olive oil
• ▢ Flaky salt, such as Maldon or Diamond kosher
• ▢ Black peppercorns in a pepper mill

Instructions 

• Wash, peel and trim the vegetables as needed to make bite-sized pieces or matchsticks.
• Arrange the vegetables on a serving plate or large platter. To make them extra refreshing, put them in shallow bowls on top of some crushed ice.
• Set out small plates and allow each person to mix salt and fresh ground pepper in one, and some olive oil in another.
• Dip the vegetables in oil, then in the salt mixture. Eat.

Karen’s Notes and Tips

• The vegetables are best when crunchy, fresh and cold. Before serving, you can immerse vegetables in a large bowl of ice water for 15 minutes. Drain and pat dry before arranging on a platter.

Nutrition

Calories: 73kcal Carbohydrates: 15g Protein: 4g Fat: 1g Sodium: 53mg Fiber: 5g

Nutrition facts are calculated by third-party software. If you have specific dietary needs, please refer to your favorite calculator.

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• Italian
• Salad
• Vegetables

Hey, I’m Karen

Creator of Familystyle Food

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I’m a food obsessed super-taster and professionally trained cook ALL about creating elevated dinners with everyday ingredients. Find simplified recipes made from scratch and enjoy incredibly tasty food! Read more about me here.