Vegetarian Muffuletta

I love making different types of sandwiches, and one of Vivek's favorites is a twist on the New Orleans special Muffuletta!  This type of sandwich originated among Italian immigrants in New Orleans and traditionally contains an olive salad, mortadella (an Italian sausage), salami, mozzarella, ham, and provolone cheese.  It was easy to modify this sandwich to make it vegetarian: I simply took out the sausage, salami and ham!  I also substituted cheddar cheese for the mozzarella to add some saltiness.  The flavor really comes from the olive salad, and it is so good grilled so the cheese is melted inside!

Recipe for Vegetarian Muffuletta

INGREDIENTS
Round french bread or hoagie buns
4 carrots, diced into small cubes
1 onion, diced into small cubes
10 oz jar of green pimento stuffed olives
1/2 cup distilled white vinegar
1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp dried basil
1 tsp dried oregano
1 tbsp creole seasoning (such as Tony Chachere's)
Sliced sharp cheddar cheese
Sliced provolone (not smoked)

INSTRUCTIONS
1. Scoop out some of the bread from the inside of the top bun to make a little "boat" to hold the olive salad.

2. To make the olive salad, mis the carrots, onions, olives, vinegar, olive oil, basil, oregano and creole seasoning in a large bowl.  For the best flavor, cover the bowl after mixing well and put it in the fridge for at least one hour.

3. To assemble the sandwich, scoop the olive salad into the bread "boats." Then layer with 1-2 slices of sharp cheddar and 1-2 slices of provolone (depending on how cheesy you like it).  Place the other bread on the cheese and flip over.  You can eat it cold or grilled to melt the cheese slightly.