Muffulata! Here is a killer recipe, but use your jarred caponata instead of making the one in this recipe. It is just a chopped olive "salad" with marinated veggies.

Real N'awlins Muffuletta
Submitted by: Boo
These gigantic sandwiches were invented a century ago at Sicilian Deli here in New Orleans. The spicy, tangy olive salad is what really sets this meat and cheese sandwich apart. A genuine muffuletta should be made on oven-fresh Italian bread topped with sesame seeds. Be sure and use the highest-quality ingredients available; it really makes a difference! Since you're going to all the trouble of making the olive salad, consider doubling the recipe so you'll have some extra waiting around for when you get another muffuletta craving -- it keeps for at least a month! Note: Use round bread loaves for real muffuletta.
Servings: 8

Ingredients:
1 cup pimento-stuffed green olives, crushed
1/2 cup drained kalamata olives, crushed
2 cloves garlic, minced
1/4 cup roughly chopped pickled cauliflower florets
2 tablespoons drained capers
1 tablespoon chopped celery
1 tablespoon chopped carrot
1/2 cup pepperoncini, drained
1/4 cup marinated cocktail onions
1/2 teaspoon celery seed
1 teaspoon dried oregano
1 teaspoon dried basil
3/4 teaspoon ground black pepper
1/4 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/4 cup canola oil

2 (1 pound) loaves Italian bread
8 ounces thinly sliced Genoa salami
8 ounces thinly sliced cooked ham
8 ounces sliced mortadella
8 ounces sliced mozzarella cheese
8 ounces sliced Provolone cheese

Directions:
1. 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.

2. 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.

3. 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.

oh that does sound yummy! I have a wheat bread and sliced cheese..... but that does sound good. I wonder what it'd be like with pasta and rice.

I usually eat caponata plain, by itself, at room temperature alongside other appetizers. It would take a huge amount as a sandwich filling to satisfy me. I can be happy with it as a bruschetta topping.

Jim

Hmm... the amount shouldn't be a problem. I've only had one experience with eggplant and it wasn't pleasant and I'll be the only one eating this stuff. And it might take much to be a filling for a sandwich.

Thought caponata was a "cousin" to rattitouie... that's not remotely spelled correctly, is it??

I just looked at Alexa'a recipe and noticed it contains no eggplant. I've never seen a caponata recipe without eggplant. And it is sometimes made without olives, although I like mine with olives.

I wouldn't call the olive salad caponata but they have some things in common and the muffuletta does sound tasty.

Jim

I buy a jarred Italian "Giardina" salad to make muffuletta, and it has the ingredients that Alexa listed, but not enough olives, and so I add those as well as a bit of extra oregano (fresh instead of dried).

I would have caponata by itself or with bread, but I prefer its Syrian cousin, Makdous Eggplant, which I've only had from a jar and have not made myself. Also, the makdous in the jar used whole walnut halves instead of chopped walnuts. It's very good if you can find it in a Middle Eastern market.

Lars

Here is a link that might be useful: Makdous recipe

The muffuletta olive salad is more a vinegrette based one whereas caponata is a tomato based one. A very different taste to them.

That said, I've frquently served caponata on a antipasto platter along with genoa, capicola, provolone, etc., so I think a sandwich with those ingredients might work.