"muffuletta" news and stories

Each Thursday, we round up a selection of scrumptious links from our friends over at YumSugar. Here's what they've got cooking this week:

• Tyler's ultimate baby food, for the discerning toddler.
• Track the development of a Joe, a cup of Joe, to be exact.
• Skip the brown-bag PB & J for a muffuletta or nine other delectable sandwich options.
• Spring may be on its way out, but lamb is still here, as evidenced by these delicious lamb chops with mint-pistachio pesto.
• A rose by any other name -- test your berry brain skills.
• If you couldn't get into esteemed Eton College, the next best thing is The Eton Mess -- a strawberry dessert.

The Super Bowl is Sunday, but not two days later, we jump right into Mardi Gras festivities. Since Mardi Gras is on a Tuesday and we know you're utterly responsible on "school nights," why not celebrate it a little early by serving classic New Orleans fare at your Super Bowl Party? Gumbo, jamablaya, and of course, the muffuletta.

The muffuletta is something new to me. I've heard about, read about, and seen this giant Sicilian stuffed sandwich, but only tried it for the very first time a few weeks ago when I was in New Orleans for the BCS Bowl. Though I am not normally a huge fan of sandwiches in general, I fell in love with the powerfully garlicky olive salad, one of the specific ingredients that makes the muffuletta a muffuletta.

The muffuletta's size makes it the perfect party sandwich, since you can make a few, then cut them into single-size servings for your guests. The basic ingredients are a round, somewhat flat seeded loaf of firm bread (for which the sandwich is named), salumi, cheese, and olive salad.

If you can't get your hands on muffuletta bread specifically, something like a focaccia is a good substitute. Slice the bread horizontally, rub the cut sides of the bread with oil from the olive salad, then pile on any of assorted salumi, provolone cheese, and of course, the olive salad, which you can either buy or make yourself. Press the sandwich together and you're good to go.

Of course, if you live in New Orleans, you can just pick some up from the place that invented the sandwich, Central Grocery (where I got and ate mine)!

If you’re not familiar with New Orleans food terms, Mardi Gras can be a confusing time because their cuisine is in the spotlight. We’ve covered King Cake and Jambalaya, but there are so many others. NewOrleansRestaurants.com has put together a list of the local lingo, complete with definitions of anything you might encounter when dining down in the Big Easy. The pronunciation guide is especially helpful to anyone who will be traveling through the area. Examples include:

• Beignet (ben yay') - Lighter than a doughnut, and square (no holes), sprinkled with powdered sugar
• Crawfish (craw' fish) - Fresh water shellfish, also known as "mudbugs" from the bayous!
• Muffuletta (Muf' a lotta) - And a lotta it is! Super-large, round, fat sandwich filled with salami-type meats, mozzarella cheese, pickles, and olive salad.
• Praline (Praw leen') Brown sugar, pecan-filled, candy patty.

And if you’re looking for non-food terms that might help you out on your travels, ExperienceNewOrleans.com has plenty, and you’ll soon know your bayous from your Boogalees.

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