Zesty olive salad, roasted red peppers, giardiniera, Salami, Mortadella, Pepperoncini, Cream cheese and Mozzarella, all layered and served warm with Italian bread!
15.75 ounce jargreen olives with or without pimentos
8ouncescream cheese, softened
24.25 ounce canschopped black olives
1cupgiardiniera(see recipe notes)
1½teaspoonsgarlic powder
½teaspoonblack pepper
½cupchopped roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
3tablespoonschopped pepperoncini
½cupchopped salami
½cupchopped mortadella, or ham
8thin slices provolone
2cupsshredded mozzarella, (divided)(½ for olive/cream cheese mixture; ½ for top of dip)
spray oil for baking dish
Instructions
Prep
Finely chop roasted red peppers until you have a ½ cup; set aside
½ cup chopped roasted red peppers, drained and chopped
Lightly spray oil in a baking dish
spray oil for baking dish
Preheat oven to 350°F
Make the Muffaletta Layer Dip
Measure one cup of gardiniera; place in food processor; add green olives; pulse till grainy (See recipe notes)
1 cup giardiniera, 1 5.75 ounce jar green olives
Add cream cheese, black olives, garlic powder and black pepper to processor; pulse a few times and transfer mixture to a bowl
8 ounces cream cheese, softened, 2 4.25 ounce cans chopped black olives, 1½ teaspoons garlic powder, ½ teaspoon black pepper
Fold in 1 cup of shredded mozzarella
2 cups shredded mozzarella, (divided)
Using a spatula, spread ½ of the mixture into a lightly oiled baking dish
Sprinkle half of the mortadella and half of the salami (¼ cup each) over the mixture
Sprinkle half of the roasted red peppers over the meat (¼ cup)
Sprinkle half of the chopped pepperoncini over the red peppers (1½ tablespoons)
Place 4 slices of provolone over the mixture
Repeat process, layering the giardiniera mixture, chopped meats, chopped red peppers, chopped pepperoncini and the last 4 slices of provolone
Top muffaletta dip with remaining cup of shredded mozzarella
Bake uncovered @ 350°F for 20-25 minutes on the middle rack (or until bubbly)
Serve with Italian bread
Notes
Baking Pan Size and YieldThis recipe was cooked in a 9 x 6 x 2 baking dish and it filled it to the top, yielding about 4 cups of dip. You could make this in an 8 x 8 square pan as well.If you're using a big baking dish, like a 9 x 13, then double the recipe, otherwise, it will be very thin and you won't have enough dip ingredients to layer.Get a better idea of the total volume your baking dish and adjust ingredient proportions for your baking dish.Giardiniera:Some brands include cauliflower, carrots, red peppers, celery and pepperoncini. I took the pepperoncini of the gardiniera mixture because I had already chopped 3 tablespoons of pepperoncini. If your brand of giardiniera already has pepperoncini in it, you might not want to add the 3 tablespoons of pepperoncini, as indicated in the recie - they're pretty salty.Roasted red peppers:I use jarred, packed in water. Take some out, and finely chop the peppers till you have 1/2 a cup.Mortadella:Mortadella is an Italian emulsified sausage. You can usually find it in the gourmet section of the deli. If you can't find Mortadella, substitute with uncured chopped ham or bologna.