Make dry bread your own again! Make croutons out of the bread and whip up a delicious Italian bread salad. Panzanella can be varied endlessly – here is a variation with tomato, cucumber, persimmon and olives. Serve as is or with juicy chicken. Colorful, fresh, crunchy and good!
The recipe is from MatPrat guest chef Britt Marlene Kasin.
You will need this for 4 servings:
- 1 can of cherry tomatoes
- 1 cucumber
- 1 persimmon
- 1 red onion
- Croutons from ¼-½ bread (see separate method below)
- About. 20 Kalamata olives
- 2 mozzarellas (125 g each)
- 2 tablespoons of good olive oil
- 1 teaspoon balsamic syrup
- 0.5 teaspoon of flake salt
- 0.25 tsp ground pepper
- Garnish with 4 fresh basil leaves
- 4 pcs. chicken thigh fillet/top of boneless chicken thigh, possibly leftover pre-roasted chicken
Here’s how you do it.
Halve the cherry tomato, cut the cucumber and persimmon into large pieces, and the red onion into thin slices. Arrange the chopped vegetables on a large serving plate or deep bowl with the croutons and olives. Cut or tear the mozzarella into smaller pieces. Spread the cheese on top of the salad. Drizzle with good olive oil, balsamic syrup and season with flake salt and freshly ground pepper. Garnish with fresh basil if desired.
Season the thigh fillets with salt and pepper and fry them in a medium hot pan with oil or margarine for 2 minutes on each side. Cook on low heat under the lid for 4 minutes.
Tips: Got leftover baked chicken? Tear the meat into smaller pieces and mix into the salad.
Homemade bread croutons
Make dry bread your own again! Bread croutons are great to make to use up day-old bread while taking your salad or soup to the next level.
Ingredients
½ loaf, preferably country bread
3 tbsp olive oil
1 teaspoon of salt
0.25 tsp ground pepper
1 tablespoon fresh herbs such as basil, oregano, or thyme.
Here’s how you do it.
Cut the bread into slices and then into small cubes. Mix oil, salt, pepper and herbs in a bowl. Fold the bread into the mixture. Put the bread cubes on a baking sheet covered with baking paper and bake in a 180 degree oven for approx. 15 minutes or until the bread croutons are crispy.