As many readers will know, panzanella is a classic Tuscan bread, red onion and tomato salad. Well, the other day I had on hand some old bread and a few ripe tomatoes, but I also had bits and pieces of other ingredients fit for a salad--olives, cucumbers and half an avocado. And, why not?--I made panzanella with those extra ingredients and dubbed my spur of the moment version, un po' di tutto, or a "little bit of everything". A slight exaggeration, perhaps, but this dish does illustrate how once you know a basic recipe, it is easy and a lot of fun to play around--within limits. I have never been one for creativity for its own sake, or as a substitute for a solid grounding in the classics.
Anyway, if you want to make this dish, cube some day old bread and splash it with a bit of water and allow it soften for a few minutes. (Obviously, we're talking about firm, crusty bread here--see notes.) Squeeze it dry and throw it in a bowl with roughly chopped tomato, chopped red onion and a few basil leaves, salt and pepper. NB: Although it is not illustrated in the photo, for a real panzanella, you should crumble the bread up, in which case it doesn't much matter if you cube the bread or just cut it up into chunks. This time, though, wanting a change, I left the bread cubes as they were. Apologies to any Tuscans who may happen to be reading this blog...!
Now add your 'extra' ingredients, as you like--pitted olives, chopped cucumbers, celery, chopped avocado--on this occasion. You could also add tuna, hard boiled egg, anchovy, capers, chopped parsley or other fresh herbs. Dress with a generous amount of oil, then sprinkle lightly with wine vinegar. Allow to rest for a few minutes and then serve. (Can also be made ahead, for a picnic for example.)
NOTES: Panzanella is extremely easy to make, but there are some tips to bear in mind, starting with the kind of bread you use, which will really make or break the dish. The classic bread, it goes without saying, is Tuscan bread, whose defining characteristic is its lack of salt. This makes it rather bland for eating on its own, but perfect to using in cooking or to fare la scarpetta, wiping your plate with bread. (I remember my mother in law, while on vacation with us during a visit in Italy, wondered aloud if they were too poor in Florence to afford salt!) There are lots of stories about why, one being that Pisa, which is downstream from Florence along the river Arno and was the port through which much of Florence's trade would flow, hiked the prices a bit too high for the frugal Florentines, who decided to go without. You can read all about Tuscan bread in this interesting article.
Now even if you dont' have Tuscan bread, use a bread with a nice, firm crumb. Sandwich bread won't do. A good pane casereccio would be fine, IMHO. Sourdough breads are nice, although the taste is not too close to the original, but heck, I've even made panzanella with whole wheat bread and really enjoyed it. The important thing is, you need a bread that will stand up to being soaked in water and squeezed dry. And you do need to squeeze the bread well. If not, it will be too soggy to absorb the taste of the olive oil, vinegar and other condiments.
The other key ingredient is, of course, the tomato. It can be hard to find good, ripe tomatoes--don't bother attempting the dish if you can't find them. So-called 'heirloom' tomatoes make a nice panzanella as they have real, honest to goodness tomato flavor. The varietal, on the other hand, does not make that much difference, at least to my taste. It goes without saying, perhaps, but do not use canned tomatoes! This is strictly a summer dish.
Last, but certainly not least, the olive oil: use the best quality, fruitiest extra-virgin olive oil you can find. Again, Tuscan olive oil, which is quite fruity but not quite as bold as, say, Puglian olive oil, is the obvious first choice. But any fruity olive oil will do. As for any salad, don't use 'pure' olive oil or vegetable oil, or you will be disappointed with the results. Oh, and one more thing: use white wine vinegar, not red, which will 'stain' the bread.
Postscript: For a wonderful article--almost a treatise--on making the real panzanella, see "Tuscan Tomatoes" by Corby Kummer, from The Atlantic Online. And reading this great article, I find out that what I thought was my idiosyncratic twist on panzanella is a perfectly acceptable--and traditional--variant! Ah, well, as they say, there is nothing new under the sun...
Anyway, if you want to make this dish, cube some day old bread and splash it with a bit of water and allow it soften for a few minutes. (Obviously, we're talking about firm, crusty bread here--see notes.) Squeeze it dry and throw it in a bowl with roughly chopped tomato, chopped red onion and a few basil leaves, salt and pepper. NB: Although it is not illustrated in the photo, for a real panzanella, you should crumble the bread up, in which case it doesn't much matter if you cube the bread or just cut it up into chunks. This time, though, wanting a change, I left the bread cubes as they were. Apologies to any Tuscans who may happen to be reading this blog...!
Now add your 'extra' ingredients, as you like--pitted olives, chopped cucumbers, celery, chopped avocado--on this occasion. You could also add tuna, hard boiled egg, anchovy, capers, chopped parsley or other fresh herbs. Dress with a generous amount of oil, then sprinkle lightly with wine vinegar. Allow to rest for a few minutes and then serve. (Can also be made ahead, for a picnic for example.)
NOTES: Panzanella is extremely easy to make, but there are some tips to bear in mind, starting with the kind of bread you use, which will really make or break the dish. The classic bread, it goes without saying, is Tuscan bread, whose defining characteristic is its lack of salt. This makes it rather bland for eating on its own, but perfect to using in cooking or to fare la scarpetta, wiping your plate with bread. (I remember my mother in law, while on vacation with us during a visit in Italy, wondered aloud if they were too poor in Florence to afford salt!) There are lots of stories about why, one being that Pisa, which is downstream from Florence along the river Arno and was the port through which much of Florence's trade would flow, hiked the prices a bit too high for the frugal Florentines, who decided to go without. You can read all about Tuscan bread in this interesting article.
Now even if you dont' have Tuscan bread, use a bread with a nice, firm crumb. Sandwich bread won't do. A good pane casereccio would be fine, IMHO. Sourdough breads are nice, although the taste is not too close to the original, but heck, I've even made panzanella with whole wheat bread and really enjoyed it. The important thing is, you need a bread that will stand up to being soaked in water and squeezed dry. And you do need to squeeze the bread well. If not, it will be too soggy to absorb the taste of the olive oil, vinegar and other condiments.
The other key ingredient is, of course, the tomato. It can be hard to find good, ripe tomatoes--don't bother attempting the dish if you can't find them. So-called 'heirloom' tomatoes make a nice panzanella as they have real, honest to goodness tomato flavor. The varietal, on the other hand, does not make that much difference, at least to my taste. It goes without saying, perhaps, but do not use canned tomatoes! This is strictly a summer dish.
Last, but certainly not least, the olive oil: use the best quality, fruitiest extra-virgin olive oil you can find. Again, Tuscan olive oil, which is quite fruity but not quite as bold as, say, Puglian olive oil, is the obvious first choice. But any fruity olive oil will do. As for any salad, don't use 'pure' olive oil or vegetable oil, or you will be disappointed with the results. Oh, and one more thing: use white wine vinegar, not red, which will 'stain' the bread.
Postscript: For a wonderful article--almost a treatise--on making the real panzanella, see "Tuscan Tomatoes" by Corby Kummer, from The Atlantic Online. And reading this great article, I find out that what I thought was my idiosyncratic twist on panzanella is a perfectly acceptable--and traditional--variant! Ah, well, as they say, there is nothing new under the sun...
