What is Panzanella Salad? It’s a is an Italian concoction from the region of Tuscany and Umbria which is basically a chopped salad of soaked stale bread, onions and tomatoes.
Who thought of turning bread into salad?
The Italian genius for food turns those ingredients into a savory summer side dish that can be transformed with the addition of any number of fresh or grilled ingredients.
Try this rendition and make a meal of it.
Chopping tomatoes photo by Jakob Montrasio
Panzanella Salad with Chicken
- Tuscany summer flavor right in your own kitchen-This recipe is from Better Homes and Gardens, the one cookbook my grandmother cooked from, my mother cooked from, and I have cooked from for most of my life. I think my kids cook from it now. B H,and G have great recipes and lots of them. I used to cut the recipes out of the magazines, but now I like to access them online."Panzanella or panmolle is a Florentine salad of bread and tomatoes popular in the summer. It includes chunks of soaked stale bread and tomatoes, sometimes also onions and basil, dressed with olive oil and vinegar." -Wikipedia
1 14 oz.can diced tomatoes with green pepper+ celery+ onionsor use fresh- and just chop them up
3Tbsp.olive oil
2 to 2-¼lb.whole roasted chicken
4cupscubed Italian bread
2medium cucumbershalved lengthwise and sliced
1cuptorn fresh basil or spinach
Method
Spoon off 2 tablespoons of tomato liquid.
Combine with 1 tablespoon of the olive oil, dash salt, and pepper; set aside.
Remove meat from roasted chicken. Cut into pieces.
Brown bread cubes in 2 tablespoons hot oil over medium heat for 5 minutes or until golden. Remove.
Add diced tomatoes; toss. Divide on plates. Add cucumbers, chicken, and basil. Pass tomato-oil mixture.
Notes
That's how they make it, this is my variationInstead of the can of diced tomatoes, fresh Pico di Gallo. Plus the diced celery -just because I like celery. OR use tomato bruschetta - that would be good. You could dice the cucumbers for a different texture. Experiment with the greens, mix them together, add in chopped romaine. Do your own thing.
Extra virgin means comes from virgin oil production only, contains no more than 0.8% acidity, and is judged to have a superior taste. Extra Virgin olive oil accounts for less than 10% of oil in many producing countries; the percentage is far higher in the Mediterranean countries (Greece: 80%, Italy: 45%, Spain 30%). It is used on salads, added at the table to soups and stews and for dipping.
Spinach makes a very healthy salad green; pair it with strawberries and walnuts in a light raspberry vinaigrette dressing and you have a fabulous set of flavors and a bowlful of antioxidants and bioflavanoids.
Something good for you that tastes good, too.
Add Luscious Strawberry Slices
Strawberry slices add extra vitamins and flavor.
Nutritional Value Is High
WHY SHOULD YOU EAT LEAFY GREENS?
Because they are full of nutrients, add fiber to your diet, and contribute to your well being. Carotenoids vitamin A, lutein and zeaxanthin can be found in such additions as spinach and lettuces.
Substances in spinach called inorganic nitrates help muscles work more efficiently.
“Dietary intake of watercress may be sufficient to modulate this potential anti-cancer pathway.” – Health benefits of Salad Greens Greens are good source of folate.
“A recent study from Ohio State University measured how well phytochemicals were absorbed by the body after people ate a salad of lettuce, carrot, and spinach, with or without 2 1/2 tablespoons of avocado. The avocado-eaters absorbed eight times more alpha-carotene and more than 13 times more beta-carotene (both of which are thought to help protect against cancer and heart disease) than the group eating salads without avocado” – WebMD
“To remember a successful salad is generally to remember a successful dinner; at all events, the perfect dinner necessarily includes the perfect salad.”
George Ellwanger (1848-1906)
Spinach Strawberry Salad with Raspberry-Mustard Dressing
Delicious summer salad combining healthful spinach with delicious fruit.
Whisk together the vinegar, oil, onion powder, mustard, and preserves. Salt and pepper to taste.
Toss the spinach with vinaigrette dressing, layer on the strawberries and onion, sprinkle with walnuts and crumbled cheese.
* For a real treat, toast the walnuts for a minute or so in the oven before assembling the salad.
* Another addition could be avocado, sliced thinly, which complements the textures and flavors of this salad.
Notes
The beauty of this salad is that it is easily made of readily available ingredients, and types of vinegar or mustard can be interchanged to meet what you might have on hand. It is also an incredibly beautiful and tasty way to include nutritious greens and fruit in your diet. any enough for company, but you will love having this spinach salad as a regular part of the menu.
Add Greens
This is a versatile salad, and while spinach is the classic, watercress or arugula can be added to the bowl -or just garnishing the top. Remember that variety brings in additional nutrients, so experiment with the ingredients you like best. The dressing complements many of your favorites with its fruity balsamic flavors.
Tips to Get the Best Flavors Possible
Nutrition Facts
Serving size: 2 cups
Calories
764
Calories from Fat
261
% Daily Value *
Fat 29 g
45%
Protein 10 g
20%
Sodium 455 mg
19%
* The Percent Daily Values are based on a 2,000 calorie diet, so your values may change depending on your calorie needs. The values here may not be 100% accurate because the recipes have not been professionally evaluated nor have they been evaluated by the U.S. FDA.
Calories and Fat
Much of the calories and fat in this dish come from the cheese crumbles. If that is a concern, don’t use the cheese, maybe garnish with crunchy additions instead. However, the cheese also adds much of the protein, so take that into consideration when adjusting the recipe.
Try Adding Beet Cubes
Walnuts and beets bring variety to salad greens
Vary the Recipe
Most people like strawberries, but what if you are allergic to them, or you want something different?
To use the same dressing, but adding raspberry rather than strawberry preserves, or maybe plum, the fruit flavor remains.
Also consider using cubes or slices of small, sweet beetroot in place of the fresh strawberry. that would provide additional nutrients.
Don’t like walnuts? Try using pecans, instead.
Likewise, not everyone loves sliced onion in their salads. While I love the flavor it brings, it can be left out. Maybe add just a pinch of garlic to the dressing? It’s your call.
Use gorgonzola crumbles in place of the feta cheese.
If dairy is an issue simply make without the cheese crumbles.
Eat More Salad
“There was an Old Person of Fife,
Who was greatly disgusted with life;
They sang him a ballad,
and fed him on salad,
Which cured that Old Person of Fife.”
Growing Your Own
For this Wonderful Salad Recipe Spinach is a very simple green to grow in the spring or fall. It takes little space in the garden and offers plenty of dark leafy greens.
A salad green that is easily seeded in spring, just like lettuce. Learn more about growing greens
Bonus Recipe Variation
Spinach Salad with Pear and Walnuts
A winter version of the spinach salad, with the subtle flavors of pears, livened with Italian flavors.
This is a refreshing salad and the perfect foil for Chicken paprikash. Great summer cold plate dish. Essentially, it is a refrigerator pickle and tastes even better when it has been made the day ahead.
Hungarian Cucumber Salad, Uborkasalata
Super easy, refreshing salad for summers or with Hungarian entrees anytime.
2Good fresh cucumber - I like the long English cukes.
¼cupLight vinegar- white or white wine- white or white wine
2 tbspwater
saltto taste
pepperto taste
5scallionssliced
(opt)fresh dill sprigstorn into little pieces
Method
First, use a vegetable peeler to get the cucumber sliced as thinly as possible, yet keeping the round slice.
Then, mix vinegar and water to taste I like 1:2 ratio of vinegar to water. You may like it stronger... taste it to give the acidity you like.
Sea salt and Cracked fresh black pepper to taste.
Five or so scallions sliced thin
Mix and refrigerate, covered, for an hour or more.
That's it! If you have the dill sprinkle it on top for a nice variation.
Notes
Some recipes call for additions of sour cream or sugar. I like neither, but you can fix it that way if you want.Some add oil and I say "no,no, no"Alternative recipe:
Slice thinly into a bowl, 2 Cucumbers washed and peeled.
Sprinkle 2 teas. salt. and small onion. Mix and set aside 1 hour.
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