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★ Why You'll Love this Recipe ★
Fresh, colorful, and full of flavor.
Panzanella is like a summer garden in a bowl! It's just so pretty and flavorful and smells amazing too.
This is a robust salad with Italian roots, known for its vibrant colors, unique textures, and combination of garden-fresh ingredients.
A great way to use up leftover bread.
Panzanella salad is a traditional Italian dish originating from Tuscany. It's a refreshing and hearty salad that makes use of crusty (even better if it's stale!) bread, typically a rustic country-style loaf but baguettes or ciabatta bread can also be used.
This simple summer panzanella salad recipe features bread cubes, grape tomatoes, English cucumber, red onion, and fresh basil all tossed in a red-wine and Dijon vinaigrette.
Vegetarian
This salad is vegetarian but can be made into a meal by adding a protein. Chicken or steak are both great options
Panzanella is a versatile dish that can be adapted to include seasonal vegetables. It's a perfect summertime dish, making the most of fresh, ripe produce.
Add Some Richness
For more sophisticated flavor, you can layer in more decadent ingredients like capers, olives, or even cheese (such as mozzarella or feta).
This makes an excellent salad to make ahead for lunch. The bread will leave you satisfied and full until dinner.
Goes well with...
Pair this Panzanella Salad with my 3-Ingredient Brown Sugar Italian Pork Chops, Sour Cream Chive Mashed Potatoes and a Giant Twinkie Cake for dessert!
★ Ingredients You'll Need ★
You'll need some base ingredients plus any extras you'd like.
Here's a look at what goes into the base recipe:
The Salad
- Sturdy bread. You can use ciabatta bread, a baguette, or any crust bread loaf. If it's stale, that's great! The bread chunks are essentially a different style of crouton.
- Fresh basil. This adds amazing flavor and aroma.
- Olive oil. You can also use avocado oil or grape seed oil.
- Salt and pepper. I like to use fresh ground pepper and sea salt for a touch more flavor.
- Tomatoes. I love to use tri-colored tomatoes because they are just gorgeous, plump and perfectly sized. Vine tomatoes also work well since they are very flavorful and not too watery. Really, any tomato is fine. Use what you have!
- Red onion. The adds a touch of sweetness as well as beautiful color.
- English cucumber. Removing the seeds is optional. A lot of times I leave them in so it's really your personal preference. You can even use regular cucumbers, they will just be a bit more watery.
If you'd like, you can also add in some mixed salad greens.
The Dressing
- Olive oil. Again, grapeseed or avocado can also be used.
- Salt and pepper.
- Red wine vinegar. This is my favorite for it's lovely flavor, but you can also use apple cider vinegar or white vinegar if you're in a pinch.
- Dijon mustard. This is actually optional but layers in a bit of creaminess and some Earthy spice.
- Garlic. You can use fresh grated, garlic paste, or garlic powder depending on what you prefer.
- Basil. You can use fresh (always best!) or dried for the dressing.
★ How to Make this Recipe ★
This salad comes together in 3 main steps.
Here's a look at what's involved. It's pretty simple.
- Cube bread.
- Bake to golden brown.
- Combine dressing ingredients.
- Chop vegetables and basil.
- Toss everything together in a large bowl.
- Serve immediately.
★ Tips & FAQs ★
Fresh herbs are fun to experiment with and can elevate the flavor profile of your salad. Besides basil, try adding mint, parsley, or oregano for an extra burst of freshness.
Choose fresh ingredients. Use the freshest and ripest summer vegetables for maximum flavor. Look for vibrant tomatoes, crisp cucumbers, and fragrant basil.
While traditional Italian bread like ciabatta is preferred, you can experiment with other rustic varieties like sourdough or whole-grain. The key is to use a dense and somewhat dry bread that can hold up well when combined with the salad ingredients.
If you're making this ahead as meal prep, the night before for dinner, or an event, assemble everything but the bread. Add bread right before serving.
While tomatoes are a classic ingredient, you can substitute or complement them with other summer vegetables like bell peppers, zucchini, or even grilled corn for a unique twist.
Store leftovers in an airtight container in the refrigerator. Keep in mind that the bread may lose its crunchiness over time so you may want to remove the bread before storing and add additional fresh bread or croutons when serving leftovers.
Yes, you can add cheese, hard boiled egg, shrimp, chicken, steak or even marinated tofu or chickpeas for a satisfying meal.
★ More Salad Recipes ★
Want more delicious salad ideas?
Browse all my delicious and easy salad recipes and be sure to Pin your favorites for later.
Italian Panzanella Salad
Equipment
Ingredients
Croutons
- 12 oz sturdy bread cubed
- 4 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt and pepper more or less to taste
Salad
- 2 tablespoon fresh basil chopped
- 16 oz tomatoes grape, cherry, or vine
- ½ red onion quartered and cut into ½ inch cubes
- 1 English cucumber cubed (core to remove seeds if desired)
Dressing
- ⅓ cup olive oil or avocado or grapeseed oil
- ½ teaspoon salt and pepper, each more to less to taste
- ¼ cup red wine vinegar
- 2 tablespoon Dijon Mustard
- 2 teaspoon garlic paste or fresh grated
- 1 tablespoon basil fresh or dried
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Instructions
- Make croutons. Prep a baking sheet with cooking spray and aluminum foil.Toss cubed bread with salt, pepper, and olive oil on your baking sheet and bake for 10-15 minutes at 400ºF. Toss halfway through. Pieces should be golden brown and dried through. Allow to completely cool.
- Make dressing. In a jar or measuring cup, mix together all dressing ingredients and set aside.
- Prepare salad. In another large bowl add the rest of your salad ingredients and toss. Next, toss in your cooled bread until fully mixed.
- Assemble salad. Drizzle on half of the dressing and toss. Serve the rest of the dressing to drizzle on top or for individual servings.
Notes
- You can bake the bread and the dressing up to 3 days before serving. Do not add dressing and vegetables to bread until ready to serve.
- You can use your preferred tomatoes. Truly, any type or tomato will work great in this recipe. A variety of colors add to the beauty of this salad.
- Sourdough, ciabatta, or a baguette all work well for the bread cubes.
- Bake bread for less time if you like a little chewiness to your crouton, more time if prefer them more dry and crunchy.
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