Muffuletta Cooks Illustrated Recipes

MUFFULETTA (COOK'S ILLUSTRATED)

Steps:

• For the olive salad, mix everything together. Cover and refrigerate for 8 to 24 hours.
• To make the sandwich: Drain olive salad, saving the marinade. Cut the bread in half horizontally and remove most of the soft interior. Brush both inside pieces of the bread with the reserved marinade.
• Place half of the olive salad in the bottom half of the hollowed-out bread. Top it with the cold cuts. Put on the rest of the olive salad. Put top half of bread on top of it all.
• Wrap in plastic wrap. Put it between two dinner plates. (It might work best to turn the top plate upside down, depending on if the plates have any curvature to them or not.) Put 2 or 3 heavy cans on top of it to work as weights. (Mufuletta is pressed-down sandwich). Chill for at least 30 minutes or up to 6 hours.
• To serve, unwrap and cut into wedges.

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• Spread muffuletta mixture on both sides of roll. Add meats and cheese and serve.
• Coarsely chop the olives, giardiniera, pepperoncini, artichokes, mushrooms, bell peppers and garlic together, then mix together with the olive oil, canola oil, Sicilian spice, oregano, parsley and pepper in a bowl. Keep refrigerated for up to 3 months.

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• For the tapenade: Combine the olives, tomatoes, garlic, olive oil and vinegar in a food processor and pulse until the mixture is chopped but not pureed. Season with salt and pepper.
• For the sandwich: Spread some tapenade on both sides of the buns. Build each sandwich as follows: 2 ounces of mortadella, 2 ounces of salami, 1 ounce of chopped giardiniera, 2 ounces ham, 1 ounce of provolone, 1 lettuce leaf, 2 slices of tomato and top with the other half of the bun.

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• Make the olive salad by combining all ingredients in a large bowl. Set aside to marinate.
• Assemble the muffuletta by slicing the loaf of bread horizontally into 2 large pieces, with the top piece 2/3 the size of the bottom piece. Hollow out the top piece by removing the soft bread inside, leaving 1/2 inch of bread near the crust. Spread half of the olive salad on the bottom piece. Begin layering the meats, starting with the soppressata and adding 1/4 of the provolone cheese between each layer of meat except for the last.
• Spread the remaining olive salad on the last layer of meat and top with the hollowed bread. Press down lightly and let sit at least 10 minutes. To serve, slice into 6 or 8 wedges. It will keep for several hours in the refrigerator wrapped in plastic.

ITALIAN MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the first five ingredients; set aside., Cut bread in half horizontally; carefully hollow out top and bottom, leaving a 1-in. shell (discard removed bread or save for another use). , Spoon half of olive mixture over bottom half of bread. Layer with turkey, Swiss cheese, salami, provolone cheese, bologna and remaining olive mixture. Replace bread top. Cut into six wedges.

THE MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• To make the olive salad: combine all the ingredients in a mixing bowl; stir well to combine; cover and refrigerate for at least 4 hours to allow flavors to blend.
• Bring to room temperature before using.
• To make the oregano onions: separate onion rings and place in a mixing bowl, add in remaining ingredients and mix well.
• Cover and let stand at room temperature for 1-2 hours.
• To make the sandwich: all ingredients should be brought to room temperature before assembling the sandwich.
• Preheat oven to 350°.
• Slice the loaf of muffaletta bread in half horizontally; place bread on a baking sheet and heat in the oven for 5 minutes or until lightly toasted.
• Remove bread from oven; evenly distribute slices of mozzarella cheese on the top half and evenly distribute slices of provolone cheese on the bottom half.
• Return the bread to the oven and bake 5-7 minutes or until the cheese is softened but not melted; remove from oven.
• On the bottom half, layer the meats, beginning with the Genoa, then the mortadella, the capicolla, and finally the ham.
• Press down lightly on the meats to creat a level surface and spoon on the olive salad.
• Add oregano onions and drizzle with olive oil, if desired.
• Cover with top half of bread; slice into quarters and serve immediately.

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• Combine the kalamata olives, green olives, basil, garlic and oil in a food processor or blender and process until coarsely chopped.
• Cut the top from the bread loaf and hollow out the center so that about 1/2 inch of crust remains. Spread olive mixture evenly over the inside of the loaf. Layer the salami, cheese, tomatoes and onion until the loaf is full.
• Replace top of bread, lightly press down and wrap tightly in plastic wrapping. Refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or up to 1 day. Slice crosswise in about 1 1/2 inch pieces, and serve.

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• In a large bowl, combine the first 14 ingredients. Cover and refrigerate at least 8 hours. , Cut bread in half horizontally; carefully hollow out top and bottom, leaving a 1-in. shell (discard removed bread or save for another use). Spoon half the olive mixture over bottom half of bread. Layer with salami, ham, mortadella, Swiss and provolone; top with remaining olive mixture. Replace bread top. Wrap tightly. Refrigerate at least 3 hours or overnight. Cut into 8 wedges.

MUFFULETTA PANINIS

Steps:

• Place stuffed olives, Kalamata olives, red onions, lemon juice, artichoke hearts, basil, olive oil, capers, and garlic in a food processor. Pulse until coarsely chopped. Refrigerate olive salad 8 hours to overnight.
• Spray a panini press with cooking spray and preheat the grill.
• Layer 1 slice provolone cheese, 1 spoonful olive salad, 2 slices ham, 2 slices salami, another spoonful olive salad, and 1 additional slice provolone cheese on 4 slices bread; top with 4 additional slices to create 4 sandwiches. Place sandwiches in the preheated panini press and grill until bread is toasted, 3 to 5 minutes each. Cut sandwiches in half.