Panzanella

This salad is the queen of my summer. It’s my first thought when I see those irresistibly plump tomatoes from Italy or France I have to sell my mother to afford. The other key part to this dish is the bread. Traditionally you’d use your stale bread for this, but I don’t like the sogginess so prefer to roast the bread in small pieces to give it some structural integrity, at least at the beginning. Vinegar and good olive oil are also essential, but after that, all the other ingredients are foregoable. Make it your own. I truthfully throw it together differently every time, depending on what I have in my fridge. With young children, I am in my efficiency era, so have chosen to exclude roast peppers, but if you have the time, a couple of roasted/grilled and peeled peppers and chillies are spectacular in this.

As featured in the OFM

ingredients

serves 4

• 200g stale rustic bread, crusts removed, ripped or cut into 2-3cm cubes

  2 tbsp rapeseed or mild olive oil 

  ½ red onion, finely sliced

  1 garlic clove

  1 1/2 tbsp red wine vinegar

  5 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil

  8 anchovy fillets, roughly chopped

  2 tbsp capers in brine, plus 1 tbsp brine

  1 cucumber, peeled into stripes, de-seeded, and cut into  1 ½ -2cm chunks

  60g destoned black or green olives, halved

  700g ripe tomatoes, a mix of colours and sizes, cut into similar-sized chunks, 

  A small bunch of basil, leaves ripped

instructions

Preheat the oven to 180C/160C fan/gas 4. Toss the bread and oil together in a bowl, season lightly, then spread  the bread on a tray and place in the oven for 12-15 minutes until deep golden and crisp, then leave to cool.

Place the onion in a small bowl and cover with cold water while you prepare everything else. 

Meanwhile cut the garlic in half and rub around a mixing bowl (then use for something else), and whisk in the vinegar and oil to make a dressing. Season.

Add the rest of the ingredients and as soon as the toasted bread is cool, add that in and toss well with your hands. Have a taste and check the seasoning, it should taste juicy and lively with vinegar. Eat, served with grilled meat or fish or a ball of mozzarella.