Tag: olives

Make a North End Muffuletta

Sometimes we eat something delicious because we need that particular item for a photo shoot. That was the case of a recent muffuletta adventure. For a recipe we turned to our old friends at Serious Eats. (How to Make Classic New Orleans Muffulettas.)

(Note: We've seen more than one spelling for the name of this sandwich, but we're going with Muffuletta as used by Central Grocery in New Orleans, "home of the original Muffuletta.")

Here is our version, before pressing. We were pretty pleased with the result. Naturally, there are things we would do a bit differently (more oil in the olive salad) next time, but it was delicious! This was part of a newspaper column we were doing on "Sandwiches for a Crowd."

Finding the Bread

Over on Serious Eats, Kenji wrote, "This is the only ingredient that is truly difficult to source outside of New Orleans." Penny remembered Scali bread at Bova's Bakery in the North End that seemed to fit the specs. So off we went to the perfect neighborhood for gathering muffuletta ingredients.

They not only had it but, as you can see, had it in two sizes. Since this sandwich was for a small group, we picked the smaller loaf, but for you the bigger one might be a better fit.

Slicing Up the Filling!

For the filling we walked over to Salumeria Italiana. We knew they would have the meat, cheese, and makings of the olive salad. They thinly sliced everything we needed for perfect stacking.

We bought mortadella, provolone, fennel soppressata, hot capocollo, and, for our own touch and a light color in the center, added a bit of porchetta. The containers hold olives and the pickled vegetables that make up the olive salad.

Step one is to chop those with some capers, mix with olive oil, and spread it on the bread. This is even better when you make it ahead and give the ingredients time to mellow and blend.

Next, stack the meat in layers.

Wrap the sandwich, weigh it down, move it to the refrigerator, and let a few hours do their magic.

We mentioned above that this is a sandwich for a crowd. You can make as many as you need. Prepare the salad ahead, assemble, and weigh-down the beast long before your guests arrive.

Then serve it up on a cutting board and let everyone slice off the size piece they would like. Easy for entertaining, a fall picnic, or to bring to a potluck.

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photos: ©2017 Penny & Ed Cherubino

September 6, 2017
Simple Tomato Cucumber Salad

For years, when August brought me local tomatoes, I've chopped some of them with cucumber, scallions and herbs, dressed them with olive oil and vinegar, and enjoyed serving this fresh, healthy salad.

Recently I was talking to Fatima, a friend from Morocco, about the dish and she gave me her version. She uses lemon instead of vinegar. I'm a fan of lemon zest so I used both the lemon zest and juice and loved the result. In the photo (above) there is also some celery I found in the crisper and a sprinkle of my favorite Aleppo pepper over the salad.

It also has a mix of tomatoes. I cut up a big Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato and then added a few cherry tomatoes cut in quarters.

In the most basic version of this salad, you chop tomatoes, cucumbers, and scallions; season with salt, pepper, olive oil, and some kind of acid ingredient – vinegar, lemon, lime, etc. Then you can take it to what ever culture you choose.

Add some feta cheese, Kalamata olives, red onion, and green pepper with a sprinkle of oregano and you have a Greek version.

Dice tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and parsley and you have an I sraeli salad. Add garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, and lime– and it's salsa.

You can switch up the seasoning and have a different salad each day of the week. And, this base also takes on additions like cheese, beans, and legumes to turn it into a meal. All those lovely juices that come from the mix are perfect for dipping grilled slices of bread or tossing with toasted croutons to make a version of Italian panzanella!

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Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

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August 20, 2012
Simple Tomato Cucumber Salad

For years, when August brought me local tomatoes, I've chopped some of them with cucumber, scallions and herbs, dressed them with olive oil and vinegar, and enjoyed serving this fresh, healthy salad.

Recently I was talking to Fatima, a friend from Morocco, about the dish and she gave me her version. She uses lemon instead of vinegar. I'm a fan of lemon zest so I used both the lemon zest and juice and loved the result. In the photo (above) there is also some celery I found in the crisper and a sprinkle of my favorite Aleppo pepper over the salad.

It also has a mix of tomatoes. I cut up a big Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato and then added a few cherry tomatoes cut in quarters.

In the most basic version of this salad, you chop tomatoes, cucumbers, and scallions; season with salt, pepper, olive oil, and some kind of acid ingredient – vinegar, lemon, lime, etc. Then you can take it to what ever culture you choose.

Add some feta cheese, Kalamata olives, red onion, and green pepper with a sprinkle of oregano and you have a Greek version.

Dice tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and parsley and you have an I sraeli salad. Add garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, and lime– and it's salsa.

You can switch up the seasoning and have a different salad each day of the week. And, this base also takes on additions like cheese, beans, and legumes to turn it into a meal. All those lovely juices that come from the mix are perfect for dipping grilled slices of bread or tossing with toasted croutons to make a version of Italian panzanella!

What's on your Back to School shopping list? Shop Amazon for all your back to school needs, and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

Related articles

Fattoush

Goat Cheese and Olives: Quick & Easy Appetizer

Smooth Top Cooktop Tips

Cooking Sweet Corn: Microwave, Grilling, and Elote!

Where is this Bridge? Play Attention to Detail.

August 20, 2012
Simple Tomato Cucumber Salad

For years, when August brought me local tomatoes, I've chopped some of them with cucumber, scallions and herbs, dressed them with olive oil and vinegar, and enjoyed serving this fresh, healthy salad.

Recently I was talking to Fatima, a friend from Morocco, about the dish and she gave me her version. She uses lemon instead of vinegar. I'm a fan of lemon zest so I used both the lemon zest and juice and loved the result. In the photo (above) there is also some celery I found in the crisper and a sprinkle of my favorite Aleppo pepper over the salad.

It also has a mix of tomatoes. I cut up a big Cherokee Purple heirloom tomato and then added a few cherry tomatoes cut in quarters.

In the most basic version of this salad, you chop tomatoes, cucumbers, and scallions; season with salt, pepper, olive oil, and some kind of acid ingredient – vinegar, lemon, lime, etc. Then you can take it to what ever culture you choose.

Add some feta cheese, Kalamata olives, red onion, and green pepper with a sprinkle of oregano and you have a Greek version.

Dice tomatoes, cucumber, onion, and parsley and you have an I sraeli salad. Add garlic, jalapeno, cilantro, and lime– and it's salsa.

You can switch up the seasoning and have a different salad each day of the week. And, this base also takes on additions like cheese, beans, and legumes to turn it into a meal. All those lovely juices that come from the mix are perfect for dipping grilled slices of bread or tossing with toasted croutons to make a version of Italian panzanella!

What's on your Back to School shopping list? Shop Amazon for all your back to school needs, and support this site!

Details:

Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers' comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often, those add great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you. We do reserve the right to edit ads and links out of comments.

Related articles

Fattoush

Goat Cheese and Olives: Quick & Easy Appetizer

Smooth Top Cooktop Tips

Cooking Sweet Corn: Microwave, Grilling, and Elote!

Where is this Bridge? Play Attention to Detail.

August 20, 2012
Trade, Our First Look & Listen
A mid-day meeting in the building next door gave us the opportunity to try Trade on Atlantic Avenue at an off hour, when we hoped the sound level would allow conversation.

Flatbread with lamb sausage with eggplant, Manchego, peppers, and garlic yogurt

Every report we had heard on this new venture for long-time Boston Chef Jodie Adams had been filled with warnings about the noise level. A deal-breaker for us. But, we had also heard that the small plates and flatbreads were worth a try.

Pomegranate glazed eggplant with capers, olives and pine nuts

Our post-lunch, pre-dinner meal was delicious. We followed the recommendations of the crew over at Chowhound, and especially outstanding food scout MC Slim JB, and ordered the eggplant small plate and the lamb flatbread. Both were outstanding with deep, rich flavor profiles. We both love sheep's milk cheese and were happy with the flavor the Manchego lent to the flatbread.

Head-on shrimp with piri piri sauce.

We went off on our own to add the head-on shrimp that were new to the menu, according to our server. Penny loves head-on shrimp. In this case, the sauce overwhelmed the shrimp. It was a good sauce but didn't allow the shrimp to shine.
(Click a thumbnail above to see other views of Trade.)

As you can see, we had the place pretty much to ourselves. But, even with an empty room, the music was not to our taste and didn't add a positive note to our meal. But, we could converse easily.

Will we return? We may, when we happen to be in this part of town, about this time of day. There were more items on the menu we wanted to try. And, if we stop and just have one or two small plates and a glass of wine, we can be gone before the whiny vocals drive us to the street.

Hey Trade, how about a quiet night once in a while with some soft instrumental jazz? It could open up a whole new group of customers for this (and other) loud restaurants.

Related Posts: More Food & Drink from BostonZest

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Details:
Words: Penny & Ed Cherubino
Photography: © 2012 Penny & Ed Cherubino

Note on Comments: We monitor comments constantly and anything that is pure spam, inappropriate, or nasty is swept away. In addition to readers comments, we welcome hearing from the people, places, and services we cover. Often those add a great insights for our readers. As long as it doesn’t become a pure ad, we’d love to hear from you.
April 9, 2012