Muffuletta Cooks Illustrated Food

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• In a small saucepan, combine 1/2 cup of the oil, the carrot, celery, cauliflower, oregano, thyme and 3 tablespoons water. Bring to a boil, lower the heat, and simmer, covered, until the vegetables are somewhat tender, about 6 minutes. Transfer the vegetable mixture to a small bowl and stir in the olives, pimento and salt. Set aside to cool.
• When the olive-vegetable salad has cooled, stir in the parsley.
• Slice the bread in half lengthwise. Using your hands, scoop out the inside of each bread half to make a shallow pocket. Brush the inside of the top half with the remaining 2 tablespoons oil. Fill the bottom bread half with the olive-vegetable salad and pack it down with your hands. Layer the provolone, mortadella and soppressata over the salad (without letting any hang over the sides).
• Cover with the top bread half and tightly wrap the sandwich with plastic wrap. Place the sandwich on a cutting board or baking sheet and weigh it down with a heavy object, such as a cast-iron skillet, for at least 1 hour or up to 3 hours.
• Remove the plastic wrap and cut the sandwich into fourths or sixths. Serve.

MUFFULETTAS

Steps:

• Whisk the first 3 ingredients in a large bowl to blend. Gradually blend in the oil. Stir in the olives and roasted peppers. Season the vinaigrette, to taste, with salt and pepper.
• Cut the top 1-inch of the bread loaf. Set the top aside. Hollow out the bottom and top halves of the bread. Spread some of the olive and roasted pepper mix over the bread bottom and cut side of the bread top. Layer the meats and cheeses in the bread bottom. Top with the onions, then the arugula. Spread the remaining olive and roasted pepper mix on top of the sandwich and carefully cover with the bread top. You can serve the sandwich immediately or you can wrap the entire sandwich tightly in plastic wrap and place in the refrigerator a day before serving.
• Cut the sandwich into wedges and serve.

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.

MUFFULETTA SANDWICH

Steps:

• Slice bread in half lengthwise. Drizzle olive oil on both sides. Sprinkle both sides with Parmesan cheese, basil, and oregano.
• On the bottom half, layer chopped black olives and chopped green olives, then the salami, ham, provolone, and mozzarella. Cover with top layer, and cut into 4 servings.

MUFFULETTA BREAD

Steps:

• In a 2 cup glass measuring cup, combine water and sugar.
• Stir in yeast. Let stand until foamy, 5-10 minutes.
• In a food processor fitted with the steel blade, combine 3 cups flour, salt and shortening.
• Add yeast mixture.
• Process until dough forms a ball, about 5 seconds. Stop machine, and check consistency of dough. It should be smooth and satiny.
• If dough is too dry, add more warm water, 1 tablespoon at a time, processing just until blended.
• If dough is too sticky, add more flour, 1 or 2 tablespoons at a time, processing just until blended. Process 20 seconds to knead.
• Lightly oil a large bowl, swirling to coat bottom and sides.
• Place dough in the oiled bowl, and turn dough to coat all sides.
• Cover bowl with plastic wrap. Let rise in a warm, draft-free place until doubled in bulk,.
• about 1 1/2 hours.
• Lightly grease a baking sheet.
• When dough has doubled in bulk, punch down dough, and turn out onto a lightly floured surface.
• Form dough into a round loaf about 10" in diameter, and place on a greased baking sheet.
• Sprinkle top of loaf with sesame seeds.
• Press seeds gently into surface of loaf.
• Cover very loosely with plastic wrap, and let rise until almost doubled in bulk, 1 hour.
• Place rack in center of oven.
• Preheat oven to 425.
• Remove plastic wrap.
• Bake loaf in center of preheated oven, for 10 minutes.
• Reduce heat to 375, and bake 25 minutes.
• The loaf is done when it sounds hollow when tapped on bottom.
• Cool completely on a rack before slicing.

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 (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 PASTA

Steps:

• Cook pasta according to package directions. Meanwhile, in a large skillet, saute onions in 2 teaspoons butter until tender. Add garlic; cook 1 minute longer. Add the ham, tapenade and pepperoni; saute 2 minutes longer., Cube remaining butter; stir butter and cream into skillet. Bring to a boil over medium heat. Reduce heat; simmer, uncovered, for 3 minutes., Drain pasta; toss with ham mixture. Sprinkle with cheese.

RAITA (COOK'S ILLUSTRATED)

Steps:

• Stir all ingredients together. Refrigerate until needed.

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 GRILLED CHEESE

Steps:

• To make the focaccia, in a bowl, stir together the flour, salt, sugar, yeast, and rosemary. Add the water and canola oil and, using a wooden spoon, stir until the dough comes together in a rough, shaggy ball. Lightly flour a work surface and turn the dough out onto it. Knead for about 15 minutes, until smooth and elastic, then shape it into a ball.
• Oil a large bowl with canola oil, transfer the dough to the bowl, turn the dough to coat evenly with the oil, cover the bowl with a damp kitchen towel, and let the dough rise in a warm spot for 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 450 degrees F. Oil a 9 1/2- by 13-inch sheet pan with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil.
• Punch down the dough and transfer it to the prepared pan. Using your fingers, press the dough evenly over the bottom of the pan. Let rise in a warm spot for an additional 20 minutes. Brush the top with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil.
• Bake for about 15 minutes, until golden brown. Let cool completely in the pan on a wire rack, then cut into 4 even squares.
• To make the carrots, put the carrots in a heatproof bowl. In a small saucepan, combine the vinegar, salt, and sugar and bring to a boil over high heat, stirring to dissolve the salt and sugar. Pour over the carrots and let cool.
• To make the olives, in a small bowl, combine all of the ingredients and mix well.
• Split each focaccia square in half horizontally. Line up the 4 bottom halves, cut sides down, on a work surface. Top each half with 3 provolone slices, followed by one-fourth each of the olives, carrots, basil, tasso, and mozzarella. Close the sandwiches with the top halves of the focaccia squares, cut sides up.
• Line a large platter with paper towels. In a skillet over high heat, melt 1 tablespoon of the butter. Turn down the heat to low and add 1 sandwich. Press down on the top of the sandwich with a spatula to flatten it so it cooks evenly, then cook, turning once, for 2 to 3 minutes on each side, until browned and crisp on both sides and the cheese is melted. Transfer to the prepared platter to blot the excess grease. Repeat with the remaining butter and sandwiches.
• Cut the sandwiches in half, plate, and serve.

ALMOST CENTRAL GROCERY MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• Combine the olives, capers, anchovies, olive oil, lemon juice, parsley, garlic, and oregano in a bowl.
• Cover and chill for 2 to 4 hours.
• To assemble the sandwich, split the loaf of bread in half horizontally.
• Take some of the soft insides out of each side.
• Brush the inside of the top and bottom shells with excess marinade from the bottom of the olive salad bowl.
• Stir the relish to blend and then spoon half onto the bottom round of bread.
• Arrange the mortadella slices over the olive salad.
• Then layer the provolone and salami.
• Mound the remaining olive salad over that and cover with the top shell.
• Wrap the sandwich tightly with plastic wrap and chill for at least 1 hour.
• Cut the sandwich into wedges to serve.

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 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.

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.