My husband Brent recently discovered that he loves Panzanella. Panzanella is a salad that typically contains chunks of crusty bread and a mixture of vegetables tossed in a vinaigrette of some kind. Brent would likely never have approached this dish, but when he saw the delicious bread pieces going into the bowl, he couldn’t resist trying it.
It may sound a bit odd to combine bread in a salad, but it is 100% worth doing! Here is a simple Panzanella recipe that tastes delicious cold or at room temperature.
1 cucumber, seeded and diced
½ cup cherry tomatoes, halved
2 Tbls. capers
1 tsp. garlic, minced
Olive oil, salt and pepper
¼ cup red onion, sliced thin (a mandolin is a perfect tool for this)
2 cups crusty bread, torn into bite-sized pieces
Salad dressing of your choice*
Place the bread bites on a sheet pan and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.
Toast in the oven at 350 until bread edges catch a golden brown color. Be careful not to burn. Remove from oven and let cool.
Combine cucumber, tomatoes, capers, garlic, and onion in a large bowl. Season with salt and pepper. Allow to sit for 10 minutes at room temperature for flavors to come together.
Add toasted bread bites to bowl. Toss with salad dressing to combine.
*You can’t go wrong with a balsamic vinegar-and-oil dressing with this dish, but might I recommend a creamy caesar dressing? Caesar brings an unexpected lusciousness to this dish that makes it craveable. No matter what you use, be sure to add the dressing slowly and not to drown the salad itself. Remember: you can add more, but you cannot subtract!
Comments