Ingredients:
1 large bowl of tomatoes
half a loaf of bread (preferably something plain like Italian, French, or peasant bread)
Olive Oil
Red Wine Vinegar (or any vinegar you are fond of)
Herbs (definitely Basil but we like to do a combination of whatever is in our garden)
Parmesan shaved
Arugula or other green
Few things are better in the summer than fresh Panzanella made from tomatoes and herbs gathered from your garden. We may not have a lot of room to grow but we always try and plant tomatoes and herbs each summer. This is a slightly fancier version of the classic Italian staple and is sure to impress. It might be the perfect dish to bring to any summer gathering and only gets better the longer it sits in the sun.
- Cut tomatoes into fairly large bite size pieces. You don’t want to cut into too small of pieces otherwise they will break down too much through the process. Season well with salt, pepper, a drizzle of olive oil and a few shakes of vinegar to taste. Let sit for at least 30 minutes giving them a stir every so often. They will start to release their juice and break down.
- Traditionally this is made with day old stale bread that you would simply toss in with the juicy tomatoes. If you have stale bread and are short on time, this would create an equally delicious dish to serve at your cookout, but we like to be extra. We take the half loaf of your bread of choice, in this instance we used a baguette that we cut in half, smear with garlic butter, and throw on the grill to toast. Cut this into larger-bite sized piece and toss with tomatoes.
- Continue to let this sit, stirring every few minutes until the bread has soaked up the liquid and is as soft as you prefer.
- To Serve, Scoop over arugula and top with a few pieces of shaved Parmesan, a few leaves of fresh basil, a drizzle of olive oil, and a crack of pepper.
Instant Classic.
Cheers!
