After God was done creating humans, animals, and everything beautiful on the earth, he created carbs, and it was good.
I spent most of my life not knowing the bread salad existed. Let's face it, panzanella really has no business calling itself a salad because the only leafy greens added are the handful of chopped basil. I discovered panzanella's existence while perusing a Bon Appétit magazine. I immediately felt jealously that I did not think of soaking bread in dressing in bread and calling it salad and also felt a sense of urgency to run to the store, buy myself some bread and make that recipe ASAP. It's since become a staple on my list of sides to bring to a party.
Now let's talk ingredients. Traditional panzanella consists of day old bread, juicy ripe tomatoes, onions, and fresh basil all tossed in a simple vinaigrette. It's a rustic Tuscan dish that can be served as a side or main meal since it is pretty hearty. I cannot imagine how amazing it would be to sit in a Tuscan villa with a glass of wine, eating this salad with fresh Italian ingredients.
I have made the traditional recipe numerous times but decided to take a spin on another Italian appetizer, prosciutto wrapped peaches. Here in New England our grocery stores are flooded with tons of delicious ripe fresh orchard peaches. I bought some this weekend and knew exactly what to do with them.
And now for the main star of this dish, the bread. Honestly, if panzanella were a movie, the bread would likely win an Oscar over Meryl Streep. If you have stale bread on hand you can definitely use that, but I love taking some day old bread and crisping it up in the oven. I lightly brush a loaf with olive oil and bake it in the oven for a couple of minutes so it gets that super crusty texture. It works great to suck up all the delicious flavors of the tomatoes and vinaigrette.
Ingredients:
1 loaf of bread (4-5 cups diced bread)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
5 vine ripened tomatoes, quartered
1 cup cherry tomatoes
3 peaches, pitted and sliced
1 cucumber, seeded and diced
1/2 cup sliced red onion
1 cup fresh mozzarella balls
1 cup fresh basil sliced
5-6 slices of fresh prosciutto
Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Drizzle 2 tbsp olive oil over bread. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until bread becomes crusty. Dice into cubes. Place bread in a large bowl. Mix in chopped tomatoes, peaches, cucumber, red onion, and mozzarella. Whisk together the dressing ingredients and pour over the salad. Top salad with fresh basil and prosciutto.
1 loaf of bread (4-5 cups diced bread)
2 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
5 vine ripened tomatoes, quartered
1 cup cherry tomatoes
3 peaches, pitted and sliced
1 cucumber, seeded and diced
1/2 cup sliced red onion
1 cup fresh mozzarella balls
1 cup fresh basil sliced
5-6 slices of fresh prosciutto
Dressing:
1/4 cup olive oil
3 tbsp red wine vinegar
3 cloves garlic minced
1 tsp kosher salt
1/2 tsp fresh black pepper
Preheat the oven to 425 degrees F. Drizzle 2 tbsp olive oil over bread. Bake for 10 - 15 minutes until bread becomes crusty. Dice into cubes. Place bread in a large bowl. Mix in chopped tomatoes, peaches, cucumber, red onion, and mozzarella. Whisk together the dressing ingredients and pour over the salad. Top salad with fresh basil and prosciutto.
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