ROUSES_MarApr2019_Magazine-R

photo by Romney Caruso

MUFFALETTA PASTA SALAD

by Marcy Nathan, Creative Director

You can’t order a muffaletta in Sicily — or a muffaltatta, muffuletto or muffulettu. The Italian sandwich is strictly a New Orleans construct, named for the bread on which it’s served. Local lore alleges that it was invented in 1906 at Central Grocery on Decatur Street. And while they were certainly one of the first places to sell a muffaletta…they probably didn’t invent it outright. At the turn of the century, tens of thousands of Sicilians immigrated to New Orleans, and groceries and delicatessens catered to a sudden demand by migrant farmers and dockworkers for sliced Italian meats, cheeses and muffaletta loaves. (Sicilians brought from home a prepared olive salad: a blend of olives, garlic, celery, carrots, capers, cauliflower, pepperoncini and season- ings, all marinated in olive oil.) The 15-minute American lunch break meant little time for sandwich-making, however, and the rushed Sicilian customers just had the delis use their ingredients and build the sandwiches for them. Central Grocery and Progress Grocery took the idea and ran with it, offering prepared versions of the muffaletta using layers of Genoa salami, boiled ham, mortadella (Italian bologna), provolone cheese and olive salad. Montalbano’s Delicatessen even made them to order, and customers who asked for a Roma or Roman sandwich could choose the meats, cheeses and antipastos to go on the bread. Montalbano measured the sandwich on a scale and charged the customer by weight. Today, you can still go to Central Grocery and order a muffaletta. You can also get one at any Rouses Market on the Gulf Coast.

Muffaletta Pasta Salad Serves 12 WHAT YOU WILL NEED 1 pound fusilli or rotini pasta, or other small pasta shape ½ pound Provolone or Mozzarella cheese, cut in thin slices ½ pound salami, cut in thin slices 1 32-ounce jar Rouses Italian olive salad, drained, oil reserved HOW TO PREP Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over high heat. Add the pasta and cook according to package directions. Drain and rinse well under cold water; drain again and transfer to a large serving bowl. Add the salami and cheese. Add the olive salad and toss to combine. Add reserved olive oil to taste. Serve right away at room temperature, or refrigerate until ready to serve.

62 MARCH•APRIL 2019