Peach Season? Make Salad!

A simple salad made from the freshest summer ingredients is always a good idea on toasty summer days when you want something cool and refreshing but don't want to cook. Contributor Jim Dixon of Real Good Food goes classic-with-a-twist in this panzanella featuring fresh peaches.

Peach Panzanella

I came home from the weekend farmers' market with more peaches than I could eat, thanks to my friend Trevor from Baird Family Orchards. I'll be making some desserts soon, but first a savory twist using peaches instead of tomatoes in the classic Tuscan bread salad called panzanella. Like tomatoes, peaches are both sweet and acidic, and they can often be used where you might find tomatoes.

The thrifty Italians don't let anything edible go to waste, and panzanella was traditionally made with hard, stale bread soaked in water to soften, then squeezed to a soft pulp. I prefer to use fresh or slightly stale bread that's grilled or toasted, then cut into small cubes. It'll eventually soften as it absorbs the liquids in the salad.

You'll need roughly one peach for each slice of bread, maybe 4 of each for a salad to feed four to six people. But first thinly slice a red onion and soak it in a couple of tablespoons of Katz red wine vinegar [regular red wine vinegar works, too]. Cut the bread in to half-inch cubes, the peaches into bite-sized pieces. Tear or slice a good handful of basil leaves into thin strips. Combine everything in a large bowl, add a generous amount (maybe four tablespoons) of extra virgin olive oil, a light pinch of salt (unlike Tuscan bread, ours will add some salt, so taste before adding) and some freshly ground black pepper. Mangia.

How Panzanella Solved My Bread Problem

I have a bread problem. Not that many people would feel much sympathy for my situation. You see, my husband has become a bread maven. He might even be tiptoeing along the edge of evangelism, such is his passion for his newfound calling. At least twice people have shown up at our doorstep to be shown "the way"—actually Chad Robertson of Tartine Bread's way—of producing perfect artisan loaves in a home oven.

How could this be a problem?

Now, in his defense, I have to say I've been encouraging this discipleship every step of the way. The guy has a definite touch with flour, water and salt, and when you throw in a natural tendency toward tinkering plus a creative bent, that's pretty much the definition of a baker. So every two weeks for quite awhile now he's been making six loaves of sourdough, interrupted only by a trip out of town or summer temperatures soaring into the 90s.

Our five-year-old nephew spent the night last week, and his first question before being taken to daycare the next morning was, "Does Uncle Dave have any bread I can take with me?" He was comforted only by the promise that yes, indeed, Uncle Dave would bake bread for him in a couple of days. Oh, the obligations!

A perfect (and delicious) solution.

So the problem comes when one of those loaves is brought to the bread board. Being artisan-style loaves, when sliced there's always the rounded bit at the end that ends up, if it's not eaten immediately, sitting on the board and getting stale. Big deal, you say. But multiply that over dozens and dozens of loaves and you've got quite a pile of bits.

I've been chopping them up into cubes, drying them completely and then freezing them in bags, but I just don't make that many croutons for salads. And I utterly refuse to toss them out—there's nothing worse than wasted bread karma, believe me.

Then the other day, needing to make a salad for dinner and having some ripe, heirloom tomatoes on hand, I hit on the perfect solution: panzanella! I don't think of it often, since it needs tomatoes that only come at this time of year, perfectly ripe, not-too-hard, not-too-soft and terrifically flavorful. And I wasn't sure the rock-hard cubes would absorb enough of the juices to soften up to just the right consistency.

But I threw it together anyway, chopping up a little cucumber and some basil from my neighbor who couldn't use all that was in her CSA share. And you know, those dried crusty bread ends turned into luscious tomato juice bombs and solved my bread problem, at least for the duration of tomato season. What could I say but hallelujah!

Panzanella, Italian-Style Tomato-Bread Salad

For the dressing:
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
2/3 c. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed through a garlic press or minced fine
1 tsp. salt

For the salad:
4 c. bread, 2 or 3 days old, cut into 1/2” cubes
4-6 c. tomatoes, chopped in 1/2” cubes
1/2 c. basil, sliced into chiffonade
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 cucumber, peeled and seeded, cut into 1/4” cubes
1/2 c. kalamata olives, pitted and chopped (optional)
Salt to taste

In medium mixing bowl whisk dressing ingredients together. Set aside.

Put salad ingredients in a large salad bowl. Pour dressing over the top and combine thoroughly. Allow to stand 20-30 minutes before serving (an hour if the bread is very dry), mixing occasionally to distribute the juices.

Panzanella Redux: A Million Options

In the time since my last post on the bread salad the Italians call "panzanella," I've made at least two different versions of the recipe. As long as the tomatoes are juicy—perfect for those overripe specimens you just couldn't fit on your tomato platter—and the olive oil is plentiful, you're in business.

The raw material.

The two versions? Well, considering I have access to a virtually endless supply of bread because of Dave's homemade sourdough habit, we've had bread salad as both a main dish and a side salad. The first version consisted of the basic recipe combined with about a tin's worth of leftover albacore that I'd had the foresight to bag and freeze. The second was based on a variation of my friend Michel's panzanella (above) that she whipped up for an evening of wine and snacks to celebrate her new job, which eschewed the basil and added capers and chopped castelvetrano olives.

Seriously, that's it. As long as the bread has soaked up enough of the tomato juice and dressing, which takes about an hour, it's ready to eat. Talk about fleeting pleasures of late summer…grab a loaf of your favorite bread and as many ripe tomatoes as you can and get to it!

Celebrate Tomato Season Like An Italian with Panzanella

When tomato season rolls around, the first thing I want is a tomato sandwich. Yes, you heard me right, a tomato sandwich. Just thick slices of the nearest perfectly ripe heirloom tomato on some of Dave's homemade bread slathered with mayonnaise. No lettuce or other frippery. I swiftly move on to a BLT with some of Dave's home-smoked bacon, then (in no particular order) tomato salad, maybe a salsa or two or a tomato tart, but tomato season isn't completo without having that heavenly tomato-bread salad the Italians call panzanella.

Heaven on whole wheat bread.

Because of the aforementioned homemade bread, we have lots of loaf ends that get chopped up, dried and frozen, making the ideal medium to soak up the juices from the ripest, sweetest tomatoes. This is the perfect use for those tomatoes that are starting to get a little overripe and squishy, so slice up a mix of those and some ripe-but-firm ones. And while it's perfectly fine to just use good old red tomatoes, I like to include as many colors as I can for the most stunning result.

It's best to make this a bit ahead of time so the bread has the optimum opportunity to soak up those tomatoey juices, and don't forget to stir it occasionally to rotate the less-soaked pieces into the juice that gathers at the bottom of the bowl. A roasted chicken is my choice to go with this salad if you feel the need for a meat course, but shave some parmesan on top or serve alongside any grilled vegetables for a vegetarian feast fit for a king, or even company!

Panzanella

For the dressing:
1/4 c. red wine vinegar
2/3 c. olive oil
2 cloves garlic, minced fine
1 tsp. salt

For the salad:
4 c. bread, 2 or 3 days old, cut into 1/2” cubes
4-6 c. tomatoes, chopped in 1/2” cubes
1/2 c. basil, sliced into chiffonade
1/2 red onion, finely chopped
1 cucumber, peeled and seeded, cut into 1/2” cubes
1/2 c. kalamata olives, pitted and chopped
Salt to taste

In medium mixing bowl whisk dressing ingredients together. Set aside.

In large salad bowl, combine bread, tomatoes and basil. Allow to stand for 20 min. for bread to absorb juices and dressing. Add remaining ingredients and combine thoroughly. Allow to stand 20-30 minutes before serving, mixing occasionally.

And check out these other versions of panzanella. So infinitely flexible and delicious!

Summer Salad Smackdown: When God Gives You Tomatoes…

Most Portland gardeners are just starting to get some tomatoes, and contributor Jim Dixon of RealGoodFood has perfectly captured our anticipation.

I finally ate a few Sungolds (the perfect cherry tomato) from my garden last week. My other tomatoes are still green, but that first taste filled me with anticipation of more to come. All this heat is good for some things, after all.

If you’re firing up the grill to avoid any additional heat in the kitchen, be sure to toast some bread over the coals after they’ve cooled down a little. I usually do bread last, when whatever else I’m cooking over fire has been moved to the indirect heat section of he Weber. You have to watch it closely though, since it can go from lightly browned to burnt in a couple of seconds. Take a few slices and, with some good tomatoes, make this simple bread salad.

Panzanella

I use whole wheat levain from New Seasons for this; Grand Central campagnolo or Ken’s country brown would also be good. Rub several slices of grilled or toasted bread on both sides with a whole, peeled clove of garlic. Cut into bite sized pieces.

Chop 4-5 tomatoes into similar chunks. Combine with the bread, then tear the leaves from a bunch of basil and add them. Toss with about a quarter cup of extra virgin olive oil, a tablespoon or so of Katz Late Harvest Zinfandel vinegar, and a healthy pinch of flor de sal. Taste, tweak the oil, vinegar, or salt if necessary, and let sit for 15 minutes or so before serving.

You can find Jim and his supply of imported salts, Italian olive oils, Katz vinegars and assorted dry goods most Mondays from 5 to 7 pm at Activespace, 833 SE Main #122 (ground floor, NE corner of bldg.).

More salads in the Smackdown: Kale Salad with Anchovies, Olives and Lemon.