Viva Panzanella
Add some white beans, and suddenly the traditional Italian bread and tomato salad is filling enough to stand on its own. It’s a great way to use fresh tomatoes from the garden or farmers market. —Patricia Levenson, Santa Ana, California
Ingredients
- 3/4 pound sourdough bread, cubed (about 8 cups)
- 2 tablespoons olive oil
- 2-1/2 pounds tomatoes (about 8 medium), chopped
- 1 can (15 ounces) cannellini beans, rinsed and drained
- 1 can (14 ounces) water-packed artichoke hearts, rinsed, drained and quartered
- 1 cup thinly sliced roasted sweet red peppers
- 1/2 cup fresh basil leaves, thinly sliced
- 1/3 cup thinly sliced red onion
- 1/4 cup Greek olives, quartered
- 3 tablespoons capers, drained
- DRESSING:
- 1/4 cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons minced fresh parsley
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 3 tablespoons lemon juice
- 2 tablespoons white wine vinegar
- 3 teaspoons minced fresh thyme or 1 teaspoon dried thyme
- 1-1/2 teaspoons minced fresh marjoram or 1/2 teaspoon dried marjoram
- 1-1/2 teaspoons minced fresh oregano or 1/2 teaspoon dried oregano
- 1 garlic clove, minced
Reviews
This was absolutely delicious and was also a beautiful presentation. I kept the dressing on the side. It makes a great meal especially on hot days when I don't feel like cooking. My husband added freshly shaved parmesan to his.
Very good salad, I make it often. Recipe worked for me as it is written, I didn't have to make adjustments. :)
Great taste. I agree with harper723 and debharas. Will make often.
I loved this! Armed with the info from the prior reviews, I didn't toss the whole salad with dressing but served it on the side. I found it was delicious and I kept picking on this from the fridge later. I left out the olives and capers and used a fresh pepper from the garden. Definitely not expensive for us since most of the ingredients came from the garden or were already in my pantry. All I had to buy was sourdough bread and artichokes hearts (which were the one thing I didn't like in this).
Made this for a night poolside. It was fabulous! The flavor was great and I had to share the recipe with my friends as they wanted to make it! Let it stand 5 minutes before serving once you have put on the dressing.
Without dressing, I would give this salad 2.5 stars, but as written, it is terrible.Strike 1: The dressing overpowers the other flavors in what would otherwise be a delightfully flavorful salad--when you can't taste capers and greek olives, you know something's off. 5 bites in and the vinegar was so nauseating that I threw the lot in the trash and ate cold cereal for dinner. Sad, since there are a lot of pricey ingredients in there. My kids (ages 9, 7, 4) were finished with it after the first bite.Strike 2: the dressing made the toasted bread soggy right off, which killed the texture of the salad.Strike 3: The recipe makes a HUGE quantity, and to qualify as an entre, you have to eat a HEAPING dinner plate full of what should be an exciting salad, but is really a soggy mess of vinegar. You simply cannot taste the individual flavors.Suggested Changes: dress with a lighter flavored vinegarette; use fresh red peppers rather than roasted for better texture; add bread AFTER tossing salad with dressing to avoid soggy bread; if there will be leftovers, serve dressing on the side for better storage.
I made this recipe as a meat-free Lenten dinner. It made enough to last a few days and the flavors are wonderful. The only thing I changed was not tossing the dressing with the whole salad- I set out the dressing for people to add as they chose. Fantastic recipe all around!
Very good salad, unique taste makes this a winner. Love the bread incorporated into the salad. Ate as a meal and it was quite filling.