In 8 days our house will be a wall to wall family ready to begin a 4 day celebration of the graduation of my Daughter and my Nephew. Because my Daughter attends one of the largest High Schools in Cumberland County graduating a whopping 458 seniors we get to be the last graduation of the day starting at 8PM. Considering that we are not likely to leave the Crown parking lot before 10pm that makes it a little late to do much "partying". Fri morning we are packing up the Family and heading to the beach. In a moment of craziness I decided that an open house before graduation would be a good thing to do. What the heck was I thinking???? Oh yeah, did I mention that of the 8 days between now and graduation I am working 4(12 hours each) of those days.
But done is done and now I must plan what we are serving. I am just getting started on the menu but this is the one thing I have decided to make. If you have been reading MMM MMM Good a while you may have seen this recipe before but it is always a big hit. I have made it for picnics and even a couple of weddings. One of my favorite things about it is that it makes a beautiful , impressive presentation. So here is an encore presentation of Muffaletta.
Sandwich Artistry
I saw this on an episode of Everyday Italian months ago and thought it looked amazing! I had been looking for an opportunity ever since to make it. I finally did on the 4th of July. It was a HUGE hit and I have made it twice since then. One time was for friends who came over to discuss a menu for their Wedding reception. (Yes, I will be make that for their wedding). I also made it last week and took it along to Fayetteville after 5 for my friends and I to munch on while listening to the beach music. Again it was a hit. You can absolutely use whatever cold cuts and cheeses in it you desire. I used spinach in it because I thought it would hold up better than other lettuces. You could also try arugala if you don't like spinach but I just didn't mention it to anyone (my kids) who does not like spinach and they did not even notice.Though I am not crazy about olives the flavor of them in this is irreplaceable. My personal twist on this was the pesto which I think adds a great flavor to it. I think next time I might even layer some basil in with the spinach ...mmmmmm basil! The bread is also something that can be whatever you like. Round and crusty are pretty much the requirements for that. The secret to this recipe is that it MUST be made 8-24 hrs ahead, wrapped tightly and refrigerated. This lets all those yummy flavors soak into the bread.
Muffaletta
1lb round loaf of Sourdough bread
1/3 cup of Olive tampenade
1/3cup pesto
Spinach leaves
4oz sliced swiss chese
4oz sliced provolone cheese
4oz pastrami
4oz ham
4oz turkey breast
Thinly sliced Red onions
Thinly slice roasted red peppers
Carefully cut off about 1/2 in off top of Bread. This will become the "lid." With you fingers hollow out the bread leaving about a 1/2 inch wall on bottom and sides. Mix together Tampenade and Pesto. Spread 2/3 of mixture over bottom , sides and "lid" of bread. Place a single a layer of meat, cheese, tampenade/pesto, peppers, onions and spinach. Continue to layer ingredients alternating types of cheese. Continually press down on ingredients packing them very tightly into bread. Replace Top of bread onto loaf. Wrap sandwich as tight as possible with plastic wrap (press and seal is great for this). Refrigerate sandwich for at least 8hrs. Cut sandwich into 8 wedges immediately before serving.
Note:The tighter you pack the ingredients into the bread the better this will stay together when you cut it.
