Muffuletta Sandwich

What can I say? I wasn't in the mood to simmer and stir and dirty pots and pans tonight, so I made Muffulletta's.

I was in Junior High on vacation with my parents and my younger brother and sister when I tasted my first Mufulletta. It was lunch time, we were starving, and happened upon a small restaurant with a long line of people stretching out the front door. My mom, the adventurous one of the family, said it would be worth the wait. I was skeptical. A sandwich? A line that long for a sandwich? At this point in life, my only reference for a good sandwich was a flimsy piece of Pimento Loaf slapped between two pieces of Roman Meal, along with a squeeze of watery mustard on one slice. I was perfectly content up until then. But I was a sandwich neophyte. Little did I know what glories lay ahead.

Let me begin with the Olive Salad. A sandwich, in theory, is made up of equally important components - bread, meat, cheese, some type of dressing - but a Muffuletta sandwich without the Olive Salad is, well, like an orchestra without it's strings. It just won't work. This concoction of tangy, green olives and vegetables marinated in olive oil and vinegar along with oregano and garlic is what brings this sandwich to life. There's something about that vinegar taste that I crave. Like Pavlov's dog, I literally salivate whenever I take a whiff of something pickled or vinegary. Note: Some recipes call for lots of black olives or even Kalamata in this salad, but I prefer plain old green olives for the most kick.

Next we have the bread, a nice round Italian to soak up all that vinegar and oil goodness.

Last but not least, we have thinly sliced, high quality, deli ham, salami, and Provolone cheese, stacked so high I could barely get my mouth around it.

And that's pretty much all there is to a Muffuletta. I like to keep 'em pretty simple. No extra vegetables or lettuce or tomato. That'll just ruin it. Also, I recommend making it ahead of time, wrapping it up and sticking it in the fridge to marinate a bit. That'll really gets the flavors going. The bakery was out of round, Italian loafs this time, so I went with a French boule instead, which was a bit too rustic for this sandwich and a bit too fat, so I scooped out some of the inner bread. Next time, I think I'm going to try baking my own bread for this sandwich. I'll let you know how it turns out.