Panzanella is an Italian tomato and bread salad, popular in Tuscany and other parts of central Italy. It only requires 9 ingredients and 15 minutes.
Panzanella is a Tuscan chopped salad, made with tomatoes and bread. It's perfect for summer, but is so delicious I could eat it all year long.
It's made with the same ingredients we use in Spain to make gazpacho (although I don't use bread to make my gazpacho, because it also tastes amazing), which is one of my favorite foods in the whole world and is also vegan, so it was calling my name and I had to give it a try.
Classic recipe calls for stale bread and the bread is not toasted, but if you toast it, it won't go soggy and the salad will taste better in my opinion. I've also made this salad using toasted fresh bread and it also works (stale bread works best though).
We have many similar recipes in Mediterranean countries because we cook using the same ingredients most of the time. Mediterranean cuisine is one of my favorite ones, especially Italian. Italy is a beautiful country, I've been to Rome, Venice and Italian Alps, but the thing I love the most about Italy is the food, the best I've ever tried!
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Panzanella Salad
Ingredients
- 4 whole wheat bread slices, use gf if needed, stale bread works best
- 4 salad tomatoes
- 1 small cucumber, peeled
- ½ red onion
- 1 tablespoon extra virgin olive oil, see notes for an oil-free alternative
- 1 tablespoon apple cider vinegar
- ¼ teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon ground black pepper
- 20 fresh basil leaves, finely chopped
Instructions
- Toast the bread in a toaster, skillet or oven. Then cut it into bite size pieces. Set aside.
- Chop the veggies and add them to a large bowl.
- Add the rest of the ingredients, stir until well combined and serve immediately.
- Best when fresh, keep leftovers in a sealed container in the fridge for 1 to 2 days.
Notes
- Feel free to add other ingredients like lettuce, celery, garlic, olives, or whatever you want.
- If you don't consume oil, you could use my Lemon Tahini Dressing.
- Use any type of bread you have on hand. If you want to make it at home, take a look at my easy rye and spelt bread and at my gluten-free bread.
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