Panzanella

This past summer, Panzanella was one of our quick weeknight “light” dinners which then turned into lunch for the rest of the week. The prep does take a bit of time, but it’s worth it.

This recipe is inspired from Ina Garten’s Panzanella recipe, with a few changes that have evolved over the several times we’ve made it.

To make Panzanella, you will need…

• Ripe Tomatoes; I’ve enjoyed using Roma (2-3), Pints of cherry and tri-color; it all depends on what you have in your kitchen.

• 1 English cucumber

• 1 Red pepper

• 1 Yellow Pepper

• 1/2 Red Onion

• 1 can Chickpeas, drained and rinsed

• Basil (optional)

• French or Italian bread for croutons

For the vinaigrette, you will need…

• 1 1/2 tablespoons Champagne or red wine vinegar

• 1/4 cup Olive oil

• 1 teaspoon Garlic, minced

• 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard

• 1/4 teaspoon Kosher salt

• 1 /4 teaspoon Fresh ground pepper

Preheat oven to 400 degrees F.

Tear bread into small pieces. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with sea salt and fresh ground pepper. Toss to coat and place on a foil lined baking sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes, or until desired crispiness.

While the croutons are cooking, cube the tomatoes, red pepper, yellow pepper, cucumber, red onion and add to large mixing bowl. Drain and rinse chickpeas and add to mixing bowl. Mix thoroughly.

In a small bowl, whisk minced garlic, Dijon mustard, vinegar, olive oil, salt and pepper. Drizzle vinaigrette over vegetables and toss to coat thoroughly.

Notes-

• If you are serving family style for a large group, toss croutons in mixing bowl, or you can add them separately when serving to avoid soggy croutons.

• If its just Brad and I, I have been avoiding the basil as it does not age well for left overs.

• One of my favorite variations is to add Feta cheese- try it!

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Panzanella

Total Time- 20 minutes

• 2-3 ripe tomatoes, cubed, or 1 pint cherry tomatoes, halved
• 1 English cucumber, seeded, cut to 1 inch cubes
• 1 Yellow pepper, seeded, cut to 1 inch cubes
• 1 Red pepper, seeded, cut to 1 inch cubes
• 1/2 large red onion, sliced thinly
• 1 15 oz can Chickpeas, drained and rinsed
• 1/2 loaf French or Italian bread

Vinaigrette

• 1 1/2 tablespoons Champagne or Red Wine vinegar
• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 teaspoon minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustart
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/4 teaspoon fresh ground pepper

1. Preheat oven to 400 degrees F. Tear bread into small pieces and drizzle with olive oil. Season with salt and pepper. Toss to coat and place on foil lined sheet. Bake for 9-11 minutes.
2. Whisk all vinaigrette ingredients in small bowl, set aside.
3. Add tomatoes, red pepper, yellow pepper, cucumber, red onion, and chickpeas to large mixing bowl. Add croutons, and toss in viniagrette. Season with additional salt and pepper.