Chicken Muffuletta

This make-ahead sandwich is a lighter take on an old New Orleans favorite. Use a fork to scrape the bread and hollow the loaves.

Yield: 12 servings (serving size: 1 piece)

Ingredients

• 3  cups  chopped seeded tomato (about 2 medium)
• Cooking spray
• 8  cups  diced peeled eggplant (about 1 pound)
• 1 1/2  cups  chopped onion
• 2  teaspoons  chopped fresh thyme
• 1/4  teaspoon  black pepper
• 1 1/3  cups  chopped pimiento-stuffed olives (about 7 ounces)
• 1/4  cup  chopped pepperoncini (about 5 medium)
• 4  ounces  sharp provolone cheese, finely diced (about 1 cup)
• 2/3  cup  (2 ounces) chopped reduced-fat hard salami
• 1  tablespoon  olive oil
• 1  tablespoon  balsamic vinegar
• 4  (8-ounce) loaves French bread
• 1  pound  skinless, boneless rotisserie chicken breast, thinly sliced

Preparation

Spread tomato evenly onto several layers of heavy-duty paper towels. Cover with additional paper towels; let stand 10 minutes.

Heat a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat. Coat pan with cooking spray. Add eggplant and onion; sauté 10 minutes or until eggplant is tender and beginning to brown. Stir in thyme and pepper; cook 1 minute, stirring occasionally. Spoon eggplant mixture into a large bowl.

Coat pan with cooking spray. Add tomato; cook 2 minutes, stirring frequently. Stir tomato into eggplant mixture. Cool to room temperature.

Stir olives and next 5 ingredients (through vinegar) into eggplant mixture.

Cut French bread loaves in half horizontally. Hollow out top and bottom halves of bread, leaving a 1/2-inch-thick shell; reserve torn bread for another use. Spread about 3 tablespoons olive mixture over bottom half of each loaf. Arrange chicken evenly on bottom halves. Top chicken evenly with remaining 3 tablespoons olive mixture; cover with top halves of loaves. Wrap loaves with plastic wrap; refrigerate up to 24 hours. Cut each loaf into 3 pieces just before serving.

Nutritional Information

Calories:

329 (22% from fat)

Fat:

8.2g (sat 2.8g,mono 2.7g,poly 0.7g)

Protein:

21.7g

Carbohydrate:

44.9g

Fiber:

3.1g

Cholesterol:

45mg

Iron:

3.1mg

Sodium:

1004mg

Calcium:

96mg