Muffuletta

The name is believed to be a diminutive form of muffe ('mold', 'mushroom'), perhaps due to the round sandwich bread being reminiscent of a mushroom cap; or from muffola, 'muff', 'mitten'.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=NoicAQAAQBAJ&q=muffola+muff&pg=PA240|title=The Diner's Dictionary: Word Origins of Food and Drink|first=John|last=Ayto|date=October 18, 2012|publisher=OUP Oxford|isbn=9780199640249|via=Google Books}} Another theory suggests a possible French origin, considering that the word "mou" in French means "soft," referring to the tender and spongy texture of the bread. An alternative hypothesis points to a Saxon origin, due to the similarity with the English word "muffin," which refers to a small cake or bun, also known for its soft consistency. The forms muffoletta and its iterations are modern Italianisms of the original Sicilian. Like many of the foreign-influenced terms found in New Orleans, pronunciation has evolved from a phonetic forebear.

Depending on the specific Sicilian dialect, the item may be spelled:

{{div col}}

• muffiletta
• mufiletta{{cite book |last=Pfister |first=Max |date=1997 |title=Lessico etimologico italiano |publisher=Reichert |volume=6 |issue=1 |language=it |page=[{{Google books|4CzqAAAAMAAJ|keywords=mufiletta|plainurl=yes}} 441] |isbn=978-3-89500-019-5 }}
• muffuletta{{cite book |date=1977 |url={{Google books|jBJdAAAAMAAJ|keywords=muffuletta siciliano|plainurl=yes}} |title=Biblioteca del Centro di studi filologici e linguistici siciliani: Issues 1–4 |language=it |page=28 |via=Google Books }}{{cite book |last=Avolio |first=Corrado |date=1882 |title=Introduzione allo studio del dialetto siciliano: tentativo d'applicazione del metodo storico-comparativo |publisher=Uff. Tip. di Fr. Zammit |language=it |url={{Google books|PFJAAAAAYAAJ|plainurl=yes}} |page=[{{Google books|PFJAAAAAYAAJ|page=59|keywords=muffiletta siciliano|plainurl=yes}} 59] |via=Google Books }}{{cite book |last=Pitrè |first=Giuseppe |date=1889 |url={{Google books|seaBAAAAMAAJ|plainurl=yes}} |title=Usi e costumi, credenze e pregiudizi del popolo siciliano |volume=17 |publisher=L. P. Lauriel di C. Clausen |page=[{{Google books|seaBAAAAMAAJ|page=360|keywords=muffuletta siciliano|plainurl=yes}} 360] |language=it |via=Google Books }}{{cite book |editor1-last=Ciccarelli |editor1-first=Diego |editor2-last=Valenza |editor2-first=Marisa Dora |date=2006 |title=La Sicilia e l'Immacolata: non solo 150 anni |publisher=Officina di Studi Medievali |series=Collana Franciscana |volume=15 |language=it |isbn=978-88-88615-96-7 |url={{Google books|WI8j4eAz1LsC|plainurl=yes}} |page=[{{Google books|WI8j4eAz1LsC|page=39|keywords=muffuletta|plainurl=yes}} 39] |via=Google Books }}{{cite book |date=1840 |title=Dizionario tascabile familiare siciliano-italiano |volume=1 |location=Palermo |publisher=Stamperia Spampinato |language=it |url={{Google books|FsUDAAAAQAAJ|plainurl=yes}} |page=[{{Google books|FsUDAAAAQAAJ|page=66|keywords=muffulettu|plainurl=yes}} 66] |via=Google Books }}
• muffulettu{{cite book |last=Pasqualino |first=Michele |date=1790 |title=Vocabolario siciliano etimologico, italiano e latino |volume=4-5 |publisher=Reale Stamperia |language=it |url={{Google books|SSoSAAAAIAAJ|plainurl=yes}} |page=[{{Google books|SSoSAAAAIAAJ|page=26|keywords=muffulettu|plainurl=yes}} 26] |via=Google Books }}{{cite book |editor-last=Mortillaro |editor-first=Vincenzo |date=1844 |title=Nuovo dizionario siciliano-italiano |volume=2 |publisher=Tip. del Giornale letterario |language=it |page=[{{Google books|vBs9AAAAYAAJ|page=75|keywords=muffulettu|plainurl=yes}} 75] |url={{Google books|vBs9AAAAYAAJ|plainurl=yes}} |via=Google Books }}
• muffuletu
• muffulitteḍḍu
• muffulittuni
• mufuletta

{{div col end}}

The muffuletta is somewhat similar to the pan bagnat sandwich of Nice, France.{{cite book | last1=Hertzberg | first1=J. | last2=Franรงois | first2=Z. | last3=Gross | first3=S.S. | title=The New Artisan Bread in Five Minutes a Day: The Discovery That Revolutionizes Home Baking | publisher=St. Martin's Press | year=2013 | isbn=978-1-250-01828-1 | url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zVWwAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA101 | access-date=May 27, 2016 | page=101}}

The muffuletta sandwich is said to have been created in 1906 at Central Grocery Co. on Decatur Street, New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S., by its delicatessen owner Salvatore Lupo, a Sicilian immigrant.{{cite news |last=Orchant |first=Rebecca |date=12 February 2013 |title=The Muffuletta: New Orleans' Original Italian Sandwich |newspaper=Huffington Post |department=Food & Drink |url=https://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/02/12/muffaletta-new-orleans-muffaletta_n_2664294.html }}{{cite news |date=10 October 2011 |title=1906: The muffuletta is created in New Orleans |newspaper=Times-Picayune |publisher=NOLA Media Group |url=http://www.nola.com/175years/index.ssf/2011/10/1906_the_muffuletta_is_created.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111105233353/http://www.nola.com/175years/index.ssf/2011/10/1906_the_muffuletta_is_created.html |url-status=dead |archive-date=5 November 2011 }} Sicilian immigrant Biaggio Montalbano, who was a delicatessen owner in New Orleans, is credited with invention of the Roma Sandwich, which may have been a forerunner of the muffuletta.{{cite web |title=Biaggio Montalbano |url=https://www.myneworleans.com/biaggio-montalbano/ |website=myneworleans.com |date=March 2008 |publisher=New Orleans Magazine |access-date=21 February 2022}} Another Italian-style New Orleans delicatessen, Progress Grocery Co., originally opened in 1924 by the Perrone family, claims the origin of the muffuletta is uncertain.{{cite web|url=http://www.perroneandsons.com/about/our-history/|title=Our History|publisher=perroneandsons.com}}

The traditional-style muffuletta sandwich consists of a muffuletta loaf{{cite web|url=http://www.leidenheimer.com/history_muff.htm|title=Leidenheimer Baking Company|website=www.leidenheimer.com}} split horizontally and covered with layers of marinated muffuletta-style olive salad,{{cite web|url=https://www.tampabay.com/cooking/looking-for-a-summer-snack-try-these-two-spreads-pimento-cheese-and-muffuletta-style-olive-salad-20190709/|title=Looking for a summer snack? Try these two spreads: pimento cheese and muffuletta-style olive salad|publisher=tampabay.com|date=July 8, 2019}} salami, ham, Swiss cheese, provolone, and mortadella.{{cite web|url=http://www.frenchquarter.com/best-muffulettas-french-quarter-nearby/|title=Best Muffulettas in the French Quarter and Nearby|website=FrenchQuarter.com}} Quarter, half, and full-sized muffulettas are sold.{{cite web|url=https://www.wsj.com/articles/the-5-best-muffuletta-sandwiches-in-new-orleans-1461262657|title=The 5 Best Muffuletta Sandwiches in New Orleans|first=Kathleen|last=Squires|date=21 April 2016|via=www.wsj.com}}{{cite web|url=https://www.williams-sonoma.com/recipe/muffuletta.html|title=Muffuletta|website=Williams Sonoma}}

The signature olive salad is a chopped salad made from green olives, black olives, olive oil, celery, cauliflower, carrots, sweet peppers, onions, capers, parsley, peperoncini, oregano, garlic, vinegar, herbs, and spices. It is a "piquant salad" used as a spread.{{Citation needed|date=April 2025}} Celery, cauliflower, and carrots are commonly found in the pickled form known as giardiniera.{{cite book | last1 = Zeitz | first1 = Alexandra | last2 = Deutsch | first2 = Jonathan | last3 = Fulton| first3 = Benjamin | authorlink = | title = We Eat What? A Cultural Encyclopedia of Unusual Foods in the United States | publisher = Greenwood Publishing Group| series = | volume = | edition = | date = 2018| location = | pages = | language = | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=D5HCEAAAQBAJ&dq=muffuletta&pg=PT322 | doi = | id = | isbn = 9781440841125 | quote = }} Capers and lemon juice may also be included.{{cite news | last = Weeks | first = Kevin D. | title = Muffaletta Sandwich | newspaper = The Spruce Eats | location = New York City | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = December 6, 2022 | url = https://www.thespruceeats.com/muffaletta-olive-salad-sandwich-recipe-913341 | accessdate = October 24, 2023 }} It is commercially produced for restaurants and for retail sale.{{cite news | last1 = Lawrence | first1 = Amy| last2 = Fox Burks | first2 = Justin | title = Muffuletta Salad | newspaper =Washington Post | location = | pages = | language = | publisher = | date = May 30, 2020| url = https://www.washingtonpost.com/recipes/muffuletta-salad/ | accessdate = October 24, 2023 }}

Muffuletta is usually served cold, but many vendors will toast it.

{{Portal|Italy|United States|Food}}

• List of American sandwiches

{{Reflist|2}}

{{Commons category}}

• [http://centralgrocery.com/ Central Grocery Co.] — Home of the American-style muffuletta sandwich.
• {{cite news |last=McDaniel |first=Rick |date=18 February 2009 |title=Muffaletta Bread (Recipe) |newspaper=Chef Rick |url=http://www.chefrick.com/muffaletta-bread/ }}

{{Italian bread}}

{{American bread}}

Category:American sandwiches

Category:Italian-American culture in Louisiana

Category:Cuisine of New Orleans

Category:Sicilian-American cuisine

Category:Italian breads

Category:American breads

Category:Olive dishes