muffaletta

I like to think of the muffaletta as a distant relative of the Italian sub. They both layer on the various meats and cheese—ham, capicola, salami, mortadella, provolone—and rely on something piquant and lively to stand up to all that meat, whether that's hot peppers in an Italian or the famed olive spread of the muffaletta.

Classic Muffaletta Sandwich Recipe

For the Olive Salad

shallots

celery

red pepper strips

capers, rinsed, dried, and roughly chopped

pickled peppers (such

olive oil

red wine vinegar

salt and black pepper

For the Sandwich

focaccia,

salami,

capicola,

mortadella,

provolone cheese, thinly sliced

Combine olives, shallot, celery, red peppers, capers, hot peppers (if using) and olive oil in a small bowl. Stir to combine. Season to taste with vinegar, salt, and pepper.

Tear out some of the doughy insides of the bread if it's especially thick, and lay bread slices down face up on cutting board. Spoon olive mixture on both top and bottom halves. Layer meat and cheese onto bottom half, then top with top half. Cut into quarters and serve immediately, or for better flavor, wrap in plastic and allow bread to soak up juices for one hour before serving.

Hearty and filling, this Muffaletta Sandwich is packed full of meats, cheeses and an olive spread encased in a soft round white bread.

Muffaletta Sandwich

giardiniera (drained)

olives

kalamata olives (drained)

bread

provolone cheese

deli Genoa salami

prosciutto

mozzarella

Place the giardiniera, green olives, kalamata olives, olive oil, and vinegar into a food processor. Process until it is almost a paste, set aside.

Cut the bread about ⅔ up from the bottom all the way across. Take out most of the bread from the bottom half, leaving about ½ inch thickness of bread left.

Add half of the olive spread, and spread it out evenly.

Layer the provolone cheese.

Then continue layering with the ham, salami, and prosciutto.

Finish it off with the mozzarella.

Take the top of the bread and once again scoop out most of the bread leaving a ½ inch of the bread inside. Spread the remaining olive mixture onto the bread then place it cut side down onto the sandwich.

Wrap it tightly with plastic wrap a few times so it is completely encased. Place it on a sheet tray and put something heavy on top like a 6 pack of beer or a heavy skillet. Place it in the refrigerator for at least 4 hours to chill or even best overnight.

Remove the plastic wrap and cut into wedges, serve immediately.

These muffuletta sliders are a &quot;mini&quot; version of its original &quot;giant&quot; sandwich, filled with generous amount of meats, cheeses, and a homemade olive spread.

Muffuletta Sliders with Homemade Olive Salad Spread

mortadella

salami

Genoa salami

provolone

Hawaiian rolls

giardinera mix

black olives

green olives

tbs dijon mustard

tbs red wine vinegar

Add 1/2 cup giardinera mix, 1/4 cup black olives, 1/2 cup green olives, 1 tbs dijon mustard, 2 tbs olive oil, and 2 tbs red wine vinegar to a food processor. Pulse until finely chopped. Set aside.

Make homemade olive spread:

Slice 12 Hawaiian rolls in half.

Generously spread olive spread on each roll.

Slice 6 provolone and 6 mozzarella slices in half.

Add the provolone cheese half slice on each roll.

Top the provolone cheese with 1 slice of mortadella, ham, hard salami, and Genoa salami  on each roll.

Add the mozzarella cheese half slice on each roll.

Top with the top of the Hawaiian roll.

Wrap in saran wrap and refrigerate 1 hour or more.

Assemble muffuletta sliders:

Often used in the classic New Orleans sandwich, a good Muffaletta Olive Salad is delicious in its own right.  Spread it on top of grilled chicken or serve with pita chips as a dip!

Muffaletta Olive Salad

10-oz. jar pitted green olives, drained

6-oz. can pitted black olives, drained

giardiniera mix (celery, carrots, cauliflower, peppers, etc., drained (see note))

pepperoncini (sliced)

Tbsp minced garlic

oregano

basil

½ tsp kosher salt

½ tsp black pepper

Tbsp red wine vinegar

Finely chop green olives, black olives and giardiniera and pepperoncino; place mixture in a medium mixing bowl.

Add remaining ingredients (garlic, parsley, basil, salt, pepper, red wine vinegar and olive oil); stir until well combined.  Cover and refrigerate overnight.

Serve on crusty bread, sandwiches or on top of grilled chicken.

This bread is used for the famous French Quarter sandwich of the same name.  Just about the only way to obtain this bread is to make it yourself and this bread is so easy, it&#039;s perfect for a beginning baker or anyone who is hesitant about bread baking.  The sandwich is compressed in the fridge overnight which means you get to join the gathering and aren&#039;t stuck in the kitchen.

Muffaletta Bread

bread flour (350 grams)

granulated sugar (25 grams)

instant yeast

table salt

water

grated parmesan or sesame seeds

ham (1/4 pound)

large slices, smoked turkey (1/4 pound)

beef

hard salami (1/4 pound)

Swiss Cheese (1/4 pound)

American Cheese (1/4 pound)

pepperjack cheese (1/4 pound)

roma tomatoes

banana peppers, as needed

Sandwich dressing of choice

The instructions for the processor and the mixer are the same unless otherwise noted.

Spray a 9x2&quot; round cake pan with a non-stick baking spray.  Set aside.

Place the flour, sugar, salt and instant yeast in the bowl of a processor.  Pulse several times to mix.

Combine the water (cold if using the processor - warm if using a mixer) and olive oil.  Pour over the dry ingredients and process until it mostly forms a ball.

Pour it onto a work surface and form it into a ball.  Place it in a container or bowl sprayed with a non-stick baking spray.  Turn it over so both sides are coated.  Cover the bowl or container with plastic wrap and let rise for about 2 hours until doubled in bulk.

Deflate the dough and press it into a 9&quot; round.  Place it in the prepared 9&quot; pan.

At this point it can be covered directly with plastic wrap and refrigerated up to 3 days to develop flavor.  If baking immediately, cover it and let it rise until doubled.

Preheat the oven to 450°F.  While the oven is preheating, brush the top of the bread lightly with olive oil.  Sprinkle with grated parmesan cheese or sesame seeds.

Bake 18 to 22 minutes until golden brown and medium brown. Cool on a rack and use immediately or wrap well and freeze for up to 3 months.  That,  unwrapped at room temperature.

These ingredients are the ones I used.  Feel free to use any meats, cheeses, condiments, and sandwich spreads you like.

Juice the roma tomatoes by cutting off the top and squeezing the liquid from the tomato.  Slice them about 1/4&quot; thick and set aside.

Slice the bread in half horizontally.

Spread a thick layer of the sandwich spread on the bread to within 1/2&quot; of the edge.  Cover it with the hot banana peppers.

Layer the meats and cheeses in the following order:  Ham, Swiss cheese, salami, American Cheese, smoked turkey, pepperjack cheese, roast beef and slice of tomato to cover the beef.

Spread the underside of the top layer of bread with a thick layer of sandwich bread to within 1/2&quot; of the edge of the bread.

Place the sandwich on a parchment line rimmed baking sheet.  Place a piece of parchment on top  of the bread.  Place another baking sheet on top of the paper and weight down with at least 10 pounds of weight.  I used two 10# dumbells because I had them but a 10 pound bag of flour works also.  Do not use sugar.

Refrigerate overnight to compress the sandwich.

To serve:  Bring to room temperature and cut as desired.

Assembly of Sandwich

Make the iconic New Orleans muffaletta at home with homemade olive spread, Italian meats, and cheese. Let it marinate overnight for the best flavor!

Authentic Muffaletta Sandwich with Homemade Olive Salad

(8-inch) rustic round loaf of bread

(150 g) half mild, half hot genoa salami, sliced

(200 g) mortadella, sliced

(100 g) coppa, sliced

(120 g) provolone, sliced

(250 ml) black olives, chopped

(250 ml) green olives, chopped

celery,

½ shallot, finely chopped

garlic, finely minced

pepperoncini peppers, chopped with seeds in

giardiniera pickles, chopped

parsley

extra virgin olive oil

pepperoncini pickling liquid

black pepper,

Make olive salad.

Chop and mix the olive salad ingredients. Adjust seasoning with more vinegar or pickling liquid to taste.

Prep bread.

Cut the loaf in half and remove some of the crumb from both sides to make space for filling.

Spread olive salad.

Evenly spread olive salad on both bread halves.

Layer meats and cheese.

Start with mortadella, placing half on the bottom and half on the top half of the loaf. Repeat with coppa and salami, alternating mild and hot salami on each side. Finish by layering all the cheese on one side.

Wrap and rest.

Wrap the sandwich tightly and refrigerate overnight. Optionally, weigh it down to help the ingredients meld together.

Slice and serve.

Unwrap, slice, and enjoy cold, at room temperature, or wrap in foil and heat in a 350°F oven until the cheese melts (about 20-30 mins).

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The most viewed muffaletta recipes by Recipe Cart users, saved from over 6,000 sites. Or, go to our Recipe Search Engine