Greek Panzanella

We were all over the map during Memorial Day weekend (more on that later), so I'm a little late sharing my latest dish. Better late than never, right? I figure there is still plenty of time to try it out for upcoming 4th of July gatherings.

I've made Giada's traditional Panzanella (aka "bread salad") before, but Ina Garten recently featured a Greek version on her show -- all it took was for her to say “feta” and “bread” and I was hooked.

My favorite part of the weekend was when my Aunt Judi tried the salad and exclaimed, “Oh, delicious! And what are these little black things?”. I peered over her shoulder…”Ah”, I replied. “That would be burnt bread.” I started off with the oil a little too high when I was toasting the bread so some of the cubes got a little crispy. Whoops. Nonetheless, the salad got rave reviews (whew!).

Enjoy!


Greek Panzanella
Ina Garten, Barefoot Contessa

Ingredients

•Good olive oil
•1 small French bread or boule, cut into 1-inch cubes (6 cups)
•Kosher salt
•1 hothouse cucumber, unpeeled, seeded, and sliced 1/4-inch thick
•1 red bell pepper, large diced
•1 yellow bell pepper, large diced
•1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, halved
•1/2 red onion, sliced in half rounds
•1/2 pound feta cheese, cut in 1/2-inch cubes
•1/2 cup calamata olives, pitted (these can be optional, depending on your tastes)

For the vinaigrette:
•2 cloves garlic, minced
•1 teaspoon dried oregano
•1/2 teaspoon Dijon mustard
•1/4 cup good red wine vinegar
•1 teaspoon salt
•1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
•1/2 cup good olive oil

Directions

Heat 3 tablespoons olive oil in a large saute pan. Add the bread cubes and sprinkle with salt; cook over low to medium heat, tossing frequently, for 5 to 10 minutes, until nicely browned. Add more olive oil as needed.
Place the cucumber, red pepper, yellow pepper, tomatoes and red onion in a large bowl.

For the vinaigrette, whisk together the garlic, oregano, mustard, vinegar, 1 teaspoon salt and the pepper in a small bowl. While still whisking, add the olive oil and make an emulsion. Pour the vinaigrette over the vegetables. Add the feta, olives and bread cubes and mix together lightly. Set aside for 30 minutes for the flavors to blend. Serve at room temperature.