Panzanella
- Serves 6
- Prep time: 15 mins | Cooking time: 15 mins
A rustic Italian-style salad filled with fresh flavour and satisfying texture. Ideal for warm days and shared lunches, it’s a simple way to bring vibrant colour to the table.
Ingredients
- 6 slices ciabatta, sourdough or rustic white bread, torn to 2cm pieces
- ⅓ cup (80ml) olive oil
- 2 garlic cloves, finely chopped
- 6-8 basil leaves, shredded, plus extra leaves to garnish
- 2 punnets red or mixed cherry tomatoes, halved
- 1 red capsicum, halved, seeds removed, chopped
- 1 small red onion, sliced into thin wedges
- 1 telegraph cucumber, peeled, chopped
Method
- Preheat oven to 180°C. Line a baking tray with baking paper. Arrange the bread pieces on the lined tray.
- In a medium bowl, combine the olive oil, garlic and shredded basil leaves. Season with sea salt flakes and freshly ground pepper.
- Drizzle the bread with half of the oil mixture and toss to coat. Bake for 10-12 mins or until toasted and golden. Remove from the oven and set aside to cool.
- In a large bowl, combine the tomato, capsicum, red onion and cucumber. Drizzle with the remaining oil mixture. Add the toasted bread pieces and toss to combine, allowing the bread to soak up the juices slightly. Spoon the salad onto a serving platter and pour over any juices. Top with extra basil leaves to serve.
Use it up: Any leftover bread can be blitzed in a food processor to fine crumbs for tasty breadcrumbs you can use on fish, chicken or other meat.