panzanella

If your garden is anything like ours right now, you have more tomatoes that you know what to do with! Which is a good thing.

We've been eating tomato salads every night, canning and freezing sauce, and even giving tomatoes away to friends and family.

One way we especially like to enjoy our fresh tomatoes is in panzanella salad. Panzanella is a great way to use up veggies and bread, an veggies will do! We usually combine tomatoes, peppers, zucchini, garlic, and basil, along with toasted bread cubes and an easy dijon vinaigrette. It's simple and very flavorful!

Panzanella

3 tablespoons olive oil
1 small French or Italian bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
1 teaspoon kosher salt
2 large, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1-inch cubes
1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/2-inch thick
1 red bell pepper, seeded and cut into 1-inch cubes
1 yellow squash, sliced 1/2 –inch thick
1/2 red onion, cut in 1/2 and thinly sliced
20 large basil leaves, coarsely chopped

For the vinaigrette:
1 teaspoon finely minced garlic
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
3 tablespoons Champagne vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 teaspoon kosher salt
1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Heat the oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread and salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 10 minutes, or until nicely browned. Add more oil as needed.

For the vinaigrette, whisk all the ingredients together.

In a large bowl, mix the tomatoes, cucumber, red pepper, yellow squash, red onion, and basil. Add the bread cubes and toss with the vinaigrette. Season liberally with salt and pepper. Serve, or allow the salad to sit for about half an hour for the flavors to blend.

Adapted from Barefoot Contessa Parties!