While there is nothing like a loaf of fresh baked bread, its day-old brother, stale bread, deserves a little time in the spotlight too. We all know that it’s great for making croutons, breadcrumbs, bread pudding, and heck, plain old toast for that matter. But during the summer months, stale bread screams out for something sexier, something fresh. Panzanella, or Tuscan bread salad, is the perfect way to honor the time and love that went into that loaf in the first place.
The Tuscan people like to savor every last drop, whether it be of their wine, their time with loved ones, or most importantly, their food. The Panzanella salad was born out of that root belief and uses stale bread, the freshest vine-ripe tomatoes they can gather, and any leftover produce on hand to create a hearty and fresh meal. Traditionally it’s tossed with a fruity olive oil, some red wine vinegar, and allowed to soak (preferably overnight) so that the flavors can marry together and the bread becomes nice and tender.
Working at the French Culinary Institute has its perks, one of them being direct access to fresh bread baked daily thanks to our incredible bread baking program. Every day around 3 pm the shelves outside the classroom are piled with loaves of everything from rye, to sourdough, to focaccia for the taking. Since I am addicted to bread, this proves a dangerous thing for me. As such, I tend to take home more loaves than I can use and because they are freshly made without preservatives, they start to go stale the next day.
So, when Hurricane Irene *blew through New York City this past weekend I found myself with lots of time, and thankfully bread and produce to boot. I was stock piled with tomatoes, corn, zucchini, tomatillos, red peppers, and cucumbers, making for a colorful and vitamin-rich blend of veggies. Some leftover shredded chicken got tossed in for protein, and sliced Kalamatas rounded out the sweet flavors with a nice salty bite. I whisked together some tart red wine vinegar and fruity Chilean olive oil, poured it over my cubed bread and veggies, sprinkled it with some sea salt and cracked black pepper and let it hang out and do its thing overnight in the fridge. The next day when I got home from work I had a delicious, hearty, and healthy meal waiting for me, which is the ultimate reward!
This is the perfect summertime meal that allows you to maximize the produce you spent good money on and requires no cooking at all. It also happens to the be one of those rare dishes that gets better with age. Make a big batch and enjoy lunch and dinner for the next 2 to 3 days. Use your creativity and combine whatever flavors and ingredients you like. The recipe I’ve included below is really just a guide for you to create the balance of bread and veggies that suits your taste. You could use lemon juice or balsamic instead of red wine vinegar, add chopped celery for extra crunch, or sprinkle in all those extra herbs you bought but don’t need. The choices are endless, the results are extraordinary.
*Thankfully, Irene did not impact my apartment or my neighborhood, and instead gave me a reason to bake all weekend, but I am saddened by the damage she caused to others and send my well wishes to those affected.
Panzanella Salad
Makes 2 quarts
You could use fresh bread in this recipe, but it’s doing your fresh bread an injustice, and the stale bread holds up better and doesn’t get as mushy. Ripe tomatoes and good quality olive oil are essential to making this dish work, the rest is up to you.
Ingredients
1 loaf of day-old bread (whatever variety you like) cut into cubes, about 6 cups
2 cups chopped tomatoes
2 ears of corn, kernels removed
1 red bell pepper, chopped
4 to 5 tomatillos, chopped
1 cup shredded chicken
1/2 cucumber, chopped
1/2 zucchini, chopped
1/4 cup Kalamata olives, pitted and sliced
2 cloves garlic, finely chopped
Red wine vinegar
Olive oil
Sea salt
Fresh cracked black pepper
Basil, for garnish
Procedure
- Toss cubed bread with chopped veggies in a large bowl, preferably glass or a non-reactive material.
- Whisk together enough vinegar and olive oil to make 1/2 cup of dressing, balancing the ratio of acidity to your liking. Pour over the bread and veggies, sprinkle with salt and pepper to taste, and mix well.
- Cover with plastic wrap and allow to rest in the fridge overnight.
- To serve, remove from the fridge at least 30 minutes in advance so that the salad can “relax” and come to the right temperature. Taste for seasoning and adjust if needed. Sprinkle with basil and serve.
Tara O'Keeffe