Muffaletta Pasta Salad & Grilled Chicken

Remembering Those Who Have Made The Ultimate Sacrifice To Provide Our Freedom

I can’t remember the last time we had it and I have been craving grilled chicken with BBQ sauce (not to be confused with BBQ chicken which I slow cook in a smoker).  We had this regularly as a kid and I don’t know why it’s been so long since we’ve cooked it, so it was on tap for tonight. 

Following a trip to NOLA, I found that I really liked a muffaletta sandwich in large part due to the olive salad on it.  Since I had also been wanting to make muffaletta pasta salad, we decided it would side well with the chicken.

I  found this good sounding recipe  for both the olive and pasta salads from the Slow Roasted Italian and decided to give it a try.  I made the olive salad about an hour before the pasta salad.

Olive Salad

Ingredients:

¼ cup red wine vinegar

¼ cup extra virgin olive oil

2 teaspoons minced garlic

1 teaspoon dried oregano

1 teaspoon dried parsley

½ teaspoon fresh ground black pepper

1 (6 ounce) jar Italian mix giardiniera, chopped

½ cup chopped roasted red peppers

½ cup pimento stuffed olives, sliced

½ cup sliced kalamata olives, halved

½ cup sliced black olives, sliced

2 tablespoons capers, drained

Note:  The Hot Joey’s Mild Giardiniera was picked up during our Chicago trip.

Directions:

Prepare the olive salad: In a medium bowl combine vinegar, olive oil, garlic, oregano, parsley and black pepper.  Whisk until well combined.  Set aside.  Cut up remaining ingredients according to ingredient list.  Add remaining ingredients to bowl.  Toss well until combined and coated.  Refrigerate for 30 minutes (up to overnight).

I thought the olive salad was outstanding.

Muffaletta Pasta Salad

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons EVOO

4 ounces Genoa salami, cut into bite size pieces

4 ounces mortadella, cut into bite size pieces – note 1

4 ounces capicola, cut into bite size pieces (or ham) – note 1

4 ounces provolone cheese, cut into bite size pieces

4 ounces mozzarella cheese, cut into bite size pieces

2 (16 ounce) packages frozen tortellini – Note 2

Note 1:  Without going to a speciality store in Knoxville, the chances of finding mortadella or capicola around here are pretty low, so I used a good ham and some Lay’s bologna.

Note 2:  I used the pastas we had on hand.

Directions:

1. Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat.  Cook pasta according to package directions.  Remove from heat and drain.

2. While the pasta is cooking, prepare deli meats and cheeses:  cut meats and cheese into various bite size pieces.  I don’t like to make them too small as they have a tendency to work their way to the bottom of the dish.

3. Sprinkle 2 tablespoons olive oil over drained tortellini.  Stir to combine.  

4. Add olive salad to drained tortellini and gently stir until well combined.  

5. When cooled, toss in chopped meats and cheeses.  (I didn’t let it get cool enough so the cheese melted and while not visible, the flavor is still present).

The chicken was seasoned with Tiger Seasoning and brushed with Sweet Baby Ray’s BBQ Sauce during the grilling process.

It was a really delicious meal especially with the caramelized sauce on the chicken – the way I like it - and the pasta salad was just what I was looking for and will be made again - the olive salad would be perfect on a muffaletta sandwich.

Photos can be enlarged by clicking on them.

Have a great day and thanks for stopping by Almost Heaven South.

Larry

5/19/17 First Meal Date