Muffuletta Sliders

Do you ever crave something from home? Maybe you're a little homesick or you just have a craving for something familiar?

This happened to me a few weeks ago. The cold, winter weather was making me miss home, which is Louisiana. So, I decided to whip up a Louisiana-inspired dish, mini muffulettas. So delicious, and so cute!

If you're not familiar with muffulettas, they're a flavorful Louisiana sandwich. Traditionally they have a mix of cold cuts (usually salami, ham, capicola), cheese, and a yummy olive salad. The prominent identifying element of a muffuletta is the olive salad. It's a super flavorful mix of olives, aromatic vegetables, Cajun spices, and olive oil. So good!

Here's the recipe.

Ingredients

12 Hawaiian rolls

24 slices ham

6 slices provolone cheese, cut in half

6 slices mozzarella cheese, cut in half

Olive mix

1 Tablespoon olive oil

¼ cup onions, chopped

¼ cup celery, sliced thinly

18 black olives

18 green olives (I like castelvertrano.)

1 Tablespoon olive oil

1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar

8 dashes of hot sauce (I like Tabasco.)

⅛ teaspoon pepper

1/16 teaspoon salt

Sautee onions and celery in 1 Tablespoon olive oil until softening. Combine all ingredients in a small bowl. Toss to marinate. Set aside.

Topping

2 Tablespoons butter

1 Tablespoon worchestire sauce

⅛ teaspoon cajun seasoning (I like Tony Cashare’s.)

1 Tablespoon onion, minced

Combine all ingredients in a microwave-safe container. Microwave on low until butter is melted and onions are soft.

Assemble sandwiches. Cut sandwiches in half horizontally to creat a top and bottom bun. Spoon 1 Tablespoon olive mixture. Top with mozzarella, ham, provolone, and top bun. Continue with remaining sandwiches. Poor over topping. Cook for 15 minutes on 350*F. Enjoy!

This recipe is a great make-ahead meal. You can assemble the sandwiches and refrigerate overnight. It's even better when the olive salad gets to meld and soak into the sandwich.

If you're looking for more foods to entertain with, try these recipes:

Jalapeno Chicken Sliders

Chicken Cordon Blue Minis 

(aka grown-up ham and cheese sandwiches)

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2018 Goals

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2018 Goals

Goals - some people love them, and some people prefer not to make them. I like resolutions. I like to plan, make lists, and work toward a goal. I also like the idea of choosing a word for the year.  

I like to take the beginning of each year to slow down and reflect. I reflect on last year's goals, what posts you loved last year, and what goals I want to work on for the new year. 

Instead of setting goals or resolutions, some choose a word of the year. If I had to choose a word for 2018, I would choose new. I plan to challenge myself and try many new things this year. Let's dive into my 2018 goals. 

1) Try 12 new recipes.

Do you ever find that you make the same recipes over and over again? I definitely have some favorite recipes that I make regularly. But, sometimes I get in a rut and dread making dinner. Can you relate?

I love to bake and cook. So to get out of a cooking rut, I like to try new things. New recipes make me excited to cook and try new foods. 

Do you have any favorite recipes? If so, share them below. I would love your recommendations!

2) Read 12 books.

I love to read! It’s one of my favorite hobbies, but sometimes I find that I waste too much time on social media or watching television. Can you relate? 

What books do you recommend?

3) Be physically active consistently. 

I have a gym membership and enjoy attending classes. I'm planning to try new classes this year.

Do you have favorite exercise class? 
What motivates you to be physically active?
What keeps you consistent with physical activity?

4) Learn and improve a skill.

I hope to take more cooking classes this year. I've taken a few in the past and learned a ton!

Do you have anything you want to learn to cook this year?
Do you recommend any particular cooking classes?

For more tips, encouragement, and recipes for a healthy lifestyle, you can follow me on Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. 

If you liked this post, you might enjoy:

 Setting Healthy Goals

2017 Goals Update

Physical Activity and Heart Health

Top Posts of 2017

Happy New Year! The holidays can be such a rushed time. I like to take the beginning of each year to slow down and reflect. I reflect on last year's goals and what goals I want to make for the new year.

I look back on the blog to see what you're loving too. So, here are your top 10 favorite posts from 2017.

 Pass the RD Exam

Tips for Easy Entertaining

Lasagna Bake Recipe

How Do I Become a Registered Dietitian?

5 Steps to your RD

October Favorites

Chicken Jalapeno Sliders

December Favorites

RDTOD Monthly Favorites

2017 Goals

Hope you enjoyed this look back on you 2017 favorites. These roundups are some of my favorite blogs to read, so I hope you enjoyed it!

If you have any suggestions for recipes or nutrition topics, feel free to e-mail me at RDtipoftheday@gmail.com. You can also find me on  Facebook, Pinterest, Instagram, and Twitter. 

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 Setting Healthy Goals

2017 Goals Update

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2017 Goal Update

Every year I set goals. Goals are challenges that motivate me. They are benchmarks to strive for. They give a little more concrete purpose to my everyday life. They encourage me to change, try something new, and push myself.

Here are my 2017 goals and progress.

1) Try 12 new recipes.

I set this goal to challenge myself to try new things. It can be so easy to get into a rut of cooking the same things over and over. Ask my husband, it still happens. To challenge myself, I wanted to try at least one new recipe per month. Here’s my progress:

Dutch baby

Snicker doodle cookie pie

Homemade chocolate peanut butter cups

Stuffed peppers

Chocolate nests

Vanilla Bean Cheesecake

Homemade Pita Bread

Berry Shortcake

Vanilla cupcakes and vanilla bean buttercream frosting

Cinnamon swirl bread

Oatmeal bread 

Cinnamon chip scones

Chocolate peanut butter pie with chocolate cookie crust

Gingerbread cookies

2) Read 10 books.

I love to read! It’s one of my favorite hobbies, but sometimes I find that I waste too much time on social media or watching television. Can you relate?

So, this goal challenged me to read about one book a month. I gave myself a little grace period for longer books or busy seasons. I found myself gravitating to memoirs, books about cooking, and anything encouraging. Here’s what I read.

• Kathleen Flinn – The Kitchen Counter Cooking School: How a Few Simple Lessons Transformed Nine Culinary Novices into Fearless Home Cooks
  
• Annie F. Downs – Looking for Lovely
  
  
• Kathleen Flinn – The Sharper Your Knife, the Less You Cry: Love, Laughter and Tears at the World’s Most Famous Cooking School
  
  
• Ruth Reichl – Garlic and Sapphires: the Secret Life of Critic in Disguise
  
  
• Kristin Schell – The Turquoise Table: Finding Community and Connection in Our Own Front Yard
  
  
• Chip and JoAnna Gaines – The Magnolia Story
  
  
• Jenna Weber – White Jacket Required: A Culinary Coming-of-Age Story
  
  
• Melanie Shankle – The Antelope in the Living Room: the Real Story of Two People Sharing One Life: A Memoir
  
  
• Kathleen Flinn – Burnt Toast Makes You Sing Good: A Memoir of Food and Love from an American Midwest Family
  
  
• Samantha Verant – How to Make a French Family: A Memoir of Love, Food, and Faux Pa
  
• Melanie Shankle – Sparkling Green Earrings: Catching the Light at Every Turn
  

I met my goal!  I read a few more books, but didn’t really enjoy them. So, they didn’t make the list. I also started a few other books, didn’t enjoy them, and stopped reading. I omitted them from the list as well because I want to keep things positive.

Do you have any book recommendations for me?

What is one of your favorite books?

What’s genre of books to you gravitate toward?

3) Be physically active consistently.

I have a gym membership and enjoy attending classes. I found a great instructor who is positive, encouraging, and even learns the names of the people attending class. So cool!

I started the year strong. Then, I had a few injuries, which stopped my physical activity for a while. Then, the weather was amazing this autumn! So, I was able to enjoy the weather and be physically active.

I’m restarting this goal during the holiday season. And, hope to be ready to start classes again in the new year.

4) Learn and improve a skill.

I imagined taking more cooking classes this year, but I didn’t. I was able to be a part of a recipe video at work. It was so fun! I learned a ton!

I was a "hands-in-a-recipe" video. So, I did all the chopping, mixing, and cooking. I learned a ton about the behind-the-scenes of how videos are made, and got to be a hand model. Hahahaha! Who would have thought?!? So, I’m counting that as my new skill.

What are your thoughts?

Do you set goals?

What did you accomplish this year that you’re proud of?

What is one goal you have for 2018?

I would love to hear your thoughts. Feel free to comment below or on Instagram or Twitter.

If you enjoyed this post, you might enjoy:

 Setting Healthy Goals

2017 Goals

Physical Activity and Heart Health