Stuzzichini & Finger Foods

Every great aperitivo needs something to eat. Roman and Italian small bites — each one matched to the right drink.

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The rule of aperitivo food: small, salty, and designed to make you thirsty. The snacks are not the meal — they exist to extend the drink, stimulate the appetite, and keep the conversation going until dinner. In Rome, the aperitivo hour runs from about 6:30 to 8:30pm. These recipes all work at room temperature, which is exactly how Romans serve them.

Roman classics

The originals — found at every Roman bar worth visiting
Roman staple · Fried
Supplì al Telefono
Rome's answer to Sicily's arancino. Deep-fried risotto balls stuffed with mozzarella that stretches like a phone wire when you pull them apart — hence the name. Every Roman bar worth visiting has them on the counter by 6:30pm.

Ingredients (makes 12)

300g risotto rice (Carnaroli) 700ml beef or chicken broth 100g tomato passata 1 small onion, diced 150g fior di latte mozzarella 50g Parmigiano, grated 2 eggs, beaten Breadcrumbs to coat Sunflower oil to fry

Method

1Sauté onion in olive oil until soft. Add rice and toast 1 min. Add passata, then broth ladle by ladle like a risotto. Finish with Parmigiano. Spread on a tray to cool completely — at least 2 hours or overnight.
2Cut mozzarella into 12 small cubes. With wet hands, take a spoonful of cold rice, flatten in your palm, place a cube of mozzarella in the centre, and close the rice around it into an oval shape.
3Dip each supplì in beaten egg, then roll generously in breadcrumbs. For a crispier shell, double-coat (egg → crumbs → egg → crumbs).
4Fry in hot oil (175°C) for 3–4 minutes until deep golden. Drain on paper. Serve immediately — or within 20 minutes while the mozzarella is still melted and stringy.
Pairs best with: Aperol Spritz or Campari Spritz — the bitterness cuts through the fried coating perfectly.
Roman staple · Baked or grilled
Bruschetta al Pomodoro
The word comes from "bruscare" — to toast over coals. What most of the world calls bruschetta bears little resemblance to the Roman original: thick-sliced unsalted bread, grilled hard, rubbed vigorously with raw garlic, dressed with the best olive oil you own, and topped with nothing more than chopped ripe tomato and sea salt.

Ingredients (serves 4)

8 thick slices pane casareccio or sourdough 4 ripe San Marzano or Pachino tomatoes 2 cloves garlic, whole Extra virgin olive oil (use the good one) Sea salt flakes Fresh basil, torn

Method

1Grill or toast bread slices until truly charred on both sides — you want grill marks and crunch, not pale toast. A cast iron griddle or open flame works best.
2While hot, rub each slice firmly with the raw garlic clove. The rough surface grates the garlic onto the bread. Use half a clove per slice for proper flavour.
3Dice tomatoes roughly. Season with sea salt and a little olive oil. Let sit 5 minutes. Spoon generously over bread. Finish with more olive oil and torn basil. Serve within 5 minutes before bread softens.
Pairs best with: Cynar Spritz or Select Spritz — the earthy bitterness matches the charred bread beautifully.
Roman staple · Fried
Fiori di Zucca Fritti
Fried zucchini blossoms stuffed with anchovies and fresh mozzarella — one of the most distinctly Roman things you can put in your mouth. Delicate, slightly briny, crisp on the outside and molten within. Available from late spring through summer at every Roman trattoria and forno.

Ingredients (makes 12)

12 zucchini blossoms, stamens removed 6 anchovy fillets in oil, halved lengthways 150g fior di latte, cut into 12 small pieces 150g 00 flour 200ml ice-cold sparkling water Pinch of salt Sunflower oil to fry

Method

1Gently open each blossom and stuff with one piece of mozzarella and half an anchovy. Twist the petal tips to close loosely.
2Make batter: mix flour with ice-cold sparkling water until just combined — lumpy is fine, do not overmix. The carbonation creates a lighter, crispier result than still water. Keep it cold.
3Heat oil to 180°C. Dip each blossom in batter, let excess drip off, and fry 2 minutes until pale gold. Do not over-brown — these want delicacy. Drain and salt immediately. Eat within 5 minutes.
Pairs best with: Aperol Spritz or Prosecco straight — the delicacy of the blossom needs something light.
Roman staple · Cold
Crostini con Guanciale e Pecorino
Two of Rome's most iconic ingredients on one bite. Guanciale — cured pork cheek, fattier and more flavourful than pancetta — shaved thin over toasted bread and finished with aged Pecorino Romano. This is bar snack food elevated to an art form.

Ingredients (serves 4–6)

1 small baguette or ciabatta, sliced thin 150g guanciale, sliced paper-thin 80g aged Pecorino Romano, shaved Freshly cracked black pepper A few drops of acacia honey (optional)

Method

1Toast bread slices in oven at 200°C for 6 minutes until crisp but not hard. Or grill briefly. They should snap, not bend.
2Lay slices of guanciale over each crostino — don't cook the guanciale here, the room temperature fat is the point. Finish with Pecorino shavings and generous black pepper.
3Optional but excellent: a single small drop of acacia honey over the Pecorino creates a salt-sweet balance that is dangerously good with a bitter Spritz.
Pairs best with: Campari Spritz or Negroni Sbagliato — the fat and salt beg for bitterness.

Northern Italian imports

Venetian and Milanese classics that Roman bars have adopted
Venetian · Cold
Tramezzini al Tonno e Capperi
The Venetian tramezzino — soft crustless white bread with creamy fillings — became a fixture of Italian bar culture across the whole country. The tuna and caper version is the most beloved: rich, slightly briny, impossibly soft. Always served at room temperature, never refrigerator-cold.

Ingredients (makes 8 triangles)

4 slices soft white sandwich bread, crusts removed 160g tuna in olive oil, drained 3 tbsp good mayonnaise 2 tbsp capers in brine, rinsed Half a lemon, juice only Salt and white pepper

Method

1Mash tuna with a fork (leave some texture — don't blend it smooth). Mix with mayonnaise, capers, and a squeeze of lemon. Season with white pepper; taste before adding salt as capers are salty.
2Spread generously on two slices of bread. Top with remaining slices. Press gently. Cut diagonally into triangles. Serve immediately or wrap tightly in cling film and rest 30 minutes for the filling to set.
Pairs best with: Select Spritz or Aperol Spritz — the soft bread absorbs bitters beautifully.
Venetian · Cold
Cicchetti di Baccalà Mantecato
Salt cod whipped to a silky, spreadable cream with olive oil — the Venetian cicheto that non-Italians discover and become instantly obsessed with. Served on small toasted bread rounds. The preparation is labour-intensive but the result is extraordinary, and it keeps refrigerated for several days.

Ingredients (serves 6–8)

400g salt cod (baccalà), soaked 48hrs, water changed 3x 150ml extra virgin olive oil 1 garlic clove Warm milk (a splash) White pepper Small crostini to serve

Method

1Poach soaked baccalà in unsalted water with garlic for 20 minutes. Remove skin and bones carefully. Let cool slightly.
2In a stand mixer or food processor, beat warm baccalà while slowly drizzling in olive oil — exactly like making mayonnaise. Add a splash of warm milk if it gets too thick. Beat until very white, fluffy, and spreadable. Season with white pepper.
3Spread lavishly on toasted crostini. Top with a single caper or a strip of roasted red pepper if you like. Serve at room temperature.
Pairs best with: Cynar Spritz or Negroni Sbagliato — earthy bitters love this coastal richness.
Central Italian · Fried
Olive Ascolane
Large green olives from the Ascoli Piceno area of Le Marche, pitted, stuffed with a spiced meat mixture, breaded and fried. They are addictive in the truest sense — small, crisp, briny, warm — and have spread from their homeland to every self-respecting Italian bar counter.

Ingredients (makes 20)

20 large Ascolane olives (or giant green olives), pitted 100g minced pork 50g minced veal or chicken 30g Parmigiano, grated 1 egg yolk Pinch nutmeg, salt, pepper 2 eggs beaten, flour, breadcrumbs (to coat)

Method

1Cook minced meats in a pan with olive oil until dry. Let cool. Mix with Parmigiano, egg yolk, nutmeg, salt and pepper until combined. The mixture should hold its shape.
2Stuff each olive cavity with a small amount of filling, reshaping the olive around it. Roll in flour, dip in egg, coat in breadcrumbs. Press firmly so the coating adheres.
3Fry in 180°C oil for 2–3 minutes until deep golden. Drain. Salt lightly. Best eaten at 60°C — warm but not scalding.
Pairs best with: Campari Spritz or Americano — the olive brine and meat richness are made for bitter aperitivi.
Roman · Room temp
Pizza Bianca con Prosciutto
Rome's great street food — flat, olive-oil-rich, dimpled focaccia-like bread with a perfectly crisp crust and chewy interior — split and filled with thin slices of prosciutto crudo. Every Roman forno sells it. At aperitivo time, bars cut it into small squares and lay it on the counter. It disappears in minutes.

Quick assembly version

1 sheet pizza bianca or good focaccia (bakery-bought) 120g prosciutto di Parma or San Daniele, thinly sliced Optional: fresh figs in season, or stracchino cheese

Method

1Slice pizza bianca horizontally. Layer prosciutto generously on the bottom half — do not fold it flat, let it ruffle and bunch so every bite has layers of meat.
2Optional but magnificent: add torn fresh figs in season (August–October), or a smear of stracchino (soft cow's milk cheese) before the prosciutto. Close, press lightly, slice into 4–5cm squares.
3Serve at room temperature. Never refrigerate after assembly — the bread goes tough and loses its character.
Pairs best with: Any Spritz — the neutral richness of pizza bianca works with everything. Especially good with Garibaldi.
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From our readers: "I made the supplì for a dinner party and served them with Aperol Spritz. My guests — none of them Italian — demanded the recipe before they'd left. That's when I understood why Roman bars always have them on the counter." — Marco T., Issue #8 reply.