Pan-za-whatta?
Panzanella! Or, in other words, “bread salad.”
Normally when I think of salad I get really, really bored. Lettuce. Blah. Tomatoes. Blah. Diet. Blah. (Oh, except for this awesome Vietnamese Steak Salad !)
This salad is different. I’m pretty sure that the butter+bread+delicious dressing in this dish effectively take away the “healthy” status of its salad classification. So maybe think of it more as a delicious side dish than a boring salad.
Fun Fact: This “salad” originated in Italy as a way to use up day-old stale bread.
Essentially, you just cut up some old bread, saute it in butter, then toast it in the oven until it is golden brown and crunchy and delicious and looks like this:
While the bread is toasting, just chop up your choice of vegetables and place it in a large bowl. I went with a Greek theme for this recipe, so I used tomatoes, cucumbers, bell peppers, red onion, and some olives.
Then just toss the vegetables in an easy vinaigrette, add the bread, and fold in some feta cheese.
Voila!
This is such a great side dish to bring to a party, and you can prepare it ahead of time by just keeping the bread separate from the rest of the ingredients until you are ready to serve.
Two of our lovely friends just had their first baby, so I brought some of this over when I came to visit so they could have some quick go-to food that just required tossing it together in a bowl and digging in.
You could make a winter version with Brussels sprouts and squash, or use whatever’s fresh at the supermarket to make it your own.
Don’t forget to check our all-time reader’s favorite: greek tzatziki sauce.
Live a little!
Here’s the Recipe!
Easy Greek Panzanella Recipe
Ingredients
For the Croutons
- 1/4 c. unsalted butter - divided
- 1 small loaf crusty bread - cut into bite-sized pieces
For the Vinaigrette
- 1/2 tsp. Dijon mustard
- 1/4 c. red wine vinegar
- 1/2 c. extra virgin olive oil
- 1/2 tsp. freshly ground black pepper
- 2 cloves garlic - minced
- 1/2 tsp. dried oregano
For the Salad
- 1 English cucumber - halved, seeded, and sliced ¼ inch thick
- 1 red bell pepper - chopped
- 1 orange bell pepper - chopped
- 1 pint grape tomatoes - halved
- 1/2 red onion - sliced
- 1/2 c. kalamata olives - pitted and halved
- 1/2 lb. feta cheese - cut into bite sized pieces
- Kosher salt
Instructions
For the Croutons
- Preheat your oven to 400 degrees.
- Heat a large saute pan over moderate heat. Add ⅛ c. of the butter and cook until it foams and then turns clear and brown in color. Add half of the bread pieces and toss with the browned butter. Transfer to a baking sheet. Repeat with remaining butter and bread pieces.
- Arrange the bread on the baking sheet in a single layer, then bake 10-15 minutes, or until the bread is golden and crispy on the outside but still soft in the center. Let cool.
For the Vinaigrette
- In a small bowl, whisk together the mustard, vinegar, olive oil, pepper, garlic, and dried oregano.
For the Salad
- Combine the cucumber, peppers, tomatoes, onion, and olives in a large bowl. Pour the vinaigrette over the top and toss to coat. Once the bread has cooled, fold the croutons along with the feta cheese into the salad mixture. Let sit 15 minutes so the croutons can absorb some of the dressing. Enjoy!
NOTES
Love your site! Our family spent last 2 years in Greece and love the food there. One of the favorite family dishes there is the Moussaka. Everywhere we went we had to try the Moussaka. Every family restaurant claimed that they had the best family recipe. I would love to see a recipe from you after your trip and also a healthy version. Also we learned quickly not to order off the menu, but to see what the local catch was. They would bring you into the kitchen to pick out what fish we wanted and throw it right up on the scale. Loved it. Hope you have a great trip
Awesome!! Thanks so much for the well wishes and advice. I can’t wait to try some moussaka!
Oh my, this just looks incredible! I love how fresh and colorful it is. This is on my must-make list now!
Hi, Rachel! Thanks so much for the kind words. You’re really going to love this recipe! 🙂