panzanella

Panzanella

This is a summertime classic, completely dependent on perfect summer tomatoes and a great loaf of day-old bread. I adapted the recipe from another classic: Anna Thomas' The New Vegetarian Epicure.

YOU WILL NEED:

1 English cucumber

1 green bell pepper, sliced into thin strips, about 1 ½-inches long

1 red bell pepper, sliced into thin strips, about 1 ½-inches long

½ red onion, thinly sliced

2 ripe red tomatoes

1 clove garlic, pressed

¾ cup Italian parsley, chopped

1/3 cup fresh basil, thinly sliced

2 T good olive oil

3 T balsamic vinegar

½ # good sourdough bread, day-old

Kosher salt and fresh ground pepper, to taste

METHOD

Prep and transfer to a large mixing bowl:

· Cucumber - peel and halve it lengthwise and scrape out seeds. Slice about ¼-inch thick.

· Peppers

· Red onion

· Tomatoes - rinse and cut on a plate to save the juice. Remove core and chop into 1-inch pieces.

Add remaining ingredients except for bread and toss gently.

Slice the bread into 1-inch pieces and add, gently turning. Taste for seasoning and adjust if necessary. If it seems dry, add more oil or vinegar. If too wet, add more bread.

Let sit, covered, at room temperature for a couple of hours before serving. It will be too soggy the next day, so plan on eating it all the day you make it.

copyright 2008-2014 Katie Fairbank

www.katiefairbank.com