END OF SUMMER PANZANELLA
Friday, September 11, 2009 at 10:04AM 
Originally, panzanella was a Tuscan salad made of day-old bread, fresh tomatoes, olive oil, salt and vinegar. Over the years, there have been renditions with fall vegetables, sweet fruits, grilled versions and more. The 'crouton' being the only ingredient that stands strong in all circumstances.
This seasonal panzanella takes all of about 20 minutes to throw together. If you have time, you can roast your own peppers, boil your own chickpeas and blend your own pesto. However, if you need to save yourself a few steps, these items are available, pre-made at a grocery or health food store. If you have a local farmers market, especially in California, tomatoes, peppers and greens are plenty. This recipe is a starting point, but use this as an opportunity to use your fresh produce or appropriate leftovers.
END OF SUMMER PANZANELLA // Serves 4 as a side
3 Cups Whole Grain Bread, in 1’ Cubes
½ Cup Roasted Red Peppers (make your own or use a jar)
2 Medium Heirloom Tomatoes
½ Medium Sized Red Onion
1 Cup Garbanzo Beans, fresh or canned
1 Cup Basil, Roughly Chopped
1 Cup Arugula
¼ Cup Toasted Pine Nuts
1 tbsp. Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Garlic Salt and Fresh Ground Pepper
PESTO DRESSING // Pesto recipe found (here)
3 tbsp. Pesto
2 tbsp. Lemon Juice
Oven to 400’
Spread the bread cubes on a baking sheet, drizzle with the tablespoon of extra virgin olive oil and toss them around in the baking pan. Give a generous sploosh of salt and pepper and toast in the top rack of the oven for ten minutes. Toss them around half way through baking time.
Prepare your veggies. Give a rough chop to the roasted red peppers. Slice the tomato into cubes, leave them seeded. Slice the red onion as thin as possible either with your amazing knife skills or a mandolin.
In a large bowl, combine the bread, tomatoes (and some of their juices), red onion, red peppers, garbanzo beans, arugula, half of the basil and pine nuts.
Combine the pesto ingredients together with a small whisk. Drizzle desired amount onto the panzanella and toss. Serve immediately once tossed, soggy croutons aren't so good.
Reader Comments (37)
I want to eat each of those photos. Gorgeous and just the kind of salad I could eat everyday.
This is an all time favorite salad. I like your addition of the whole grain bread. It just adds substance and character compared to just adding white bread. I always wanted to have those heirloom tomatoes but they don't grow where I live. Your version of adding pesto brings more summer into your End of Summer Panzanella. It's just gorgeous. As always, the photos are stunning.
I've never had Panzanella before. Must be so good with all the fresh vegetables. Have a great week-end :)
The individual pictures of the ingredients are beautiful! I would hang these in my house. How lucky you are to have someone who takes such great pictures. I am still mastering the art of food photography. Hopefully my pictures will evolve into something like that!
I think I am going to make this this weekend! I LOVE panzanella of all sorts. This sounds incredible, especially with the pesto dressing!
Gorgeous, Gorgeous, Gorgeous!! Oh, and the panzanella looks beautiful too ;) The new pictures of you are stunning!! Love the blue!
Even if this salad tasted like poop, I'd still love it for all of it's color. Simply gorgeous!
Oooh panzanella with pesto is a new idea to me - sounds marvelous!
Gorgeous! I love the idea of adding garbanzo beans and dressing it with a pesto dressing. Yumm.
I could live on panzanella. All summer long. Yours is definitely far better looking than any of mine!
Cheers,
*Heather*
This salad looks yummy!
[...] two. three. four. five. six. seven. eight. nine. [...]
Hi Sara! Love the recipes and the brilliant colors of your food photography! May I know what is the model of your camera? Now I am tempted to invest in one after looking at some of the amazing pictures you took :)
I want to come to your place for dinner!
Lovely! I made a spring panzanella a few months ago but would love to try one like this will all my favorite summer veggies. Plus, Panzanella is such a great way to use day old bread. This looks delicious!
Pretty pretty pretty pretty (did I mention pretty?) and delicious-looking. Yum.
End of summer? What?! The seasons aren't allowed to change without my authorization. But, if summer does have to end, this salad does make a good and tasty farewell.
I also have never had panzanella but it sounds delicious! Thanks for sharing :)
this was fantastic Sara... simply fantastic! keep it up :)
Since I experienced this first hand, I can tell you it's great! The bread is my favorite part! I'm going to use it in all kinds of salads!
Beautiful photographs! I wish I could have this salad as a 10:40PM snack right now. Yummy! Great ode to summer. I am excited for fall, but I will miss the deliciousness in this salad bowl.
Ah, I absolutely adore your photography!!! My only issue? After looking at your blog, I'm always rendered absolutely starving. Haha. Looks great!
I remember the first time I tried a panzanella, it was so much better than I expected. All those juices from the tomatoes seeping into the bread were a revelation. Yours looks really, really delicious and hardy enough to be a whole meal. Oh, so hungry.
Makes my mouth water. Makes me want to let my bread go stale. ;) Makes me want to eat this outdoors with a cold bottle of fizzy water and a good book.
I've never had panzanella but always been intrigued. This looks like such a wonderful, easy and adaptable recipe! Gorgeous photos.
That is seriously one of the best end of summer dishes I have seen! Beautiful.
gorgeous. your blog is so beautiful and inspiring.
It's always so sad to wave goodbye to summer. This year I feel like as soon as September hit summer slammed to a halt. Although I do welcome Fall...it is my favorite season:)
oh WHY did i not get around to making panzanella this summer???? i've been thinking about it. but mostly at work when the kitchen is far away.
we still have a few tomatoes out back...
perhaps.
I find I'm usually making panzanella for the intended reason--getting rid of bread! You know me and my leftovers.
And quit with the off-the-hook photos already. Amazing!
this is so beautiful.
Fantastic photos. Fantastic recipe. I LOVE this!
i tried this last week for my family. instead of beans, i added fresh pearl mozerella balls. so good!
fresh
[...] This recipe has been modified but was inspired from Sprouted Kitchen. [...]
[...] Bread. Obviously, we go to the market and to our local bakery to find the best, freshest bread available. When I was working in Manhattan, I would run out of work on Wednesday evenings hoping to catch the vendors packing up at the Union Square Greenmarket. Bread would be the last thing I could count on finding- most fresh loaves were snagged within the first several hours of the market opening. But sometimes, I would be lucky enough to find a loaf or two left. Having been sitting outside for 12 hours, I figured, why not let it sit out a little more? Older bread, left out on the counter for a couple days, can be the perfect base for the best croutons, the crunchiest breadcrumbs, and the tastiest panzanella salad. [...]
Where is the recipe for the pesto in the recipe for END OF SUMMER PANZANELLA? I can't click on it nor can I search and find it. Thanks for your help!