Neelys Muffulettta Sandwich Recipes

NEW ORLEANS MUFFULETTA RECIPE

Steps:

• Slice the round bread in half and open both sides on a flat surface.
• Brush both inner sides of the bread with oil from the Olive Salad or extra virgin olive oil, go a little heavier on the bottom.
• Begin layering thre ham, salami, and mortadella on the bottom half of the bread. Top with cheeses.
• Next, add the olive salad from the center out and spread it, leaving about a half-inch around the edge. Place the top half of the bread over the olive mixture, and press down to let the bread absorb the olive salad juices.
• Using a bread knife, slice into 4 to 6 wedges.
• Optional: place the whole sandwich, before slicing, on a large baking sheet, and toast/warm-up in a 350F preheated oven for about 5 minutes.

MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• In a small bowl, combine the olive oil and minced garlic. Let it sit for at least 15 minutes.
• Place the olives, giardiniera, shallot and oregano in your food processor. Pulse a few times until coarsely chopped.
• Transfer the olive mixture to a bowl. Add half of the garlic oil and vinegar. Stir until throughly mixed.
• Taste and season with salt and pepper as needed. For best results, cover with plastic and refrigerate overnight (or up to a week).
• Split the bread in half and brush each cut side with the remaining garlic oil.
• Heat a medium-sized skillet over medium heat, and toast the bread directly in the pan until crisp and golden brown, about 1-2 minutes per side.
• Place the bottom part of the bread, cut side up, on a cutting board. Spread half of the olive salad, making sure to include the juices.
• Layer all the Genoa salami, followed by all the ham. Then, layer the provolone cheese, mozzarella cheese, mortadella, prosciutto and soppressata. Finish with the remaining olive salad.
• Close the sandwich and wrap it tightly - two or three times - with plastic wrap.
• Place the muffuletta top side up on a cutting board and put something heavy (like a big book or a heavy pot) on top of it, to compress it. Let it rest for 1 hour. After 1 hour, turn the sandwich upside down and continue compressing for another hour.
• Cut the sandwich into wedges and serve.

PECAN CRUSTED CATFISH FINGER SANDWICH

Steps:

• In a deep-fryer or heavy-bottomed pot, heat enough oil to come halfway up the sides of the pot, to 350 degrees F.
• Cut the catfish into fingers. Set aside.
• Finely grind the pecans into crumbs in a food processor. Cook's Note: Do not over process the nuts or they will become too oily, like a nut butter, and unsuitable to use as a breading. Add the pecan crumbs to a casserole dish.
• Measure the buttermilk in a 1-cup liquid measure. Add the egg and beat well together. Pour into an 8 by 8-inch casserole dish.
• Add the panko, garlic powder, cayenne, salt and pepper, to taste, to the pecan crumbs in the casserole dish. Whisk together to combine.
• Set up an assembly line. Dredge catfish through the buttermilk mixture, then through the pecan mixture. You may need to press the pecans into the catfish to adhere.
• Add the catfish fingers to the hot oil and cook until golden brown and crisp, about 2 minutes. Remove to a paper towel lined sheet tray to drain.
• Spread some Honey Mustard Sauce on inside of the toasted rolls. Add sliced tomatoes, lettuce and the catfish fingers. Serve and enjoy warm.
• Mix all the ingredients into a small mixing bowl. Cover with plastic wrap and store in the refrigerator until ready to use.

NEELY'S BREAKFAST SANDWICH

Steps:

• Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Line a baking sheet with parchment.
• Fry the bacon in a nonstick skillet until cooked but not yet crisp. Remove the bacon to a paper towel lined sheet tray. Let cool. Reserve the bacon drippings in the skillet.
• Whisk together the flour, sugar, baking powder, and salt in a medium bowl. Add the cheese and bacon and toss. Stir in 1 1/2 cups of cream with a wooden spoon until the dough comes together. Remove the dough to the countertop and knead briefly until it is smooth and uniform in appearance. Pat the dough out to a 1-inch thickness. Using a biscuit cutter dipped in flour, punch out dough rounds. Push together the leftover dough and pat out again to 1-inch thick and cut out rounds. Arrange the biscuits on the parchment lined sheet tray.
• In a small bowl, whisk together the remaining 1 tablespoon of cream and the egg. Brush the tops of the biscuits with the egg wash and sprinkle with kosher salt. Put immediately into the oven and bake for 18 minutes.
• When the biscuits come out of the oven, start frying the eggs. Heat the same nonstick skillet used earlier (to cook the bacon) over medium heat. Once heated, crack the eggs into the pan and cook until the white is set and the eggs begin to turn golden brown. Spoon some of the hot grease over the yolks to help it cook. Season with salt and pepper, to taste.
• To assemble the sandwiches, split the biscuits in half and spread some mango preserves on the inside of the biscuit tops. Put a small handful of arugula on each of the bottoms. Top with the fried eggs and cover with the top of the biscuit. Serve immediately.

REAL N'AWLINS MUFFULETTA

Steps:

• To Make Olive Salad: In a medium bowl, combine the green olives, kalamata olives, garlic, cauliflower, capers, celery, carrot, pepperoncini, cocktail onions, celery seed, oregano, basil, black pepper, vinegar, olive oil and canola oil. Mix together and transfer mixture into a glass jar (or other nonreactive container). If needed, pour in more oil to cover. Cover jar or container and refrigerate at least overnight.
• To Make Sandwiches: Cut loaves of bread in half horizontally; hollow out some of the excess bread to make room for filling. Spread each piece of bread with equal amounts olive salad, including oil. Layer 'bottom half' of each loaf with 1/2 of the salami, ham, mortadella, mozzarella and Provolone. Replace 'top half' on each loaf and cut sandwich into quarters.
• Serve immediately, or wrap tightly and refrigerate for a few hours; this will allow for the flavors to mingle and the olive salad to soak into the bread.