Oh, summer. You are an expert wooer.
Just when I want to hate you, while I’m pushing up another hill on my bicycle, sweat dripping down my neck while I slap a bug off my face, you hit me with a gorgeous sunset over a field of wildflowers, the kind that makes me pull my massive camera out of my backpack, right there on the trail, while I literally gasp out loud.
You know just how to do it. Just after a crazy rainstorm, there’s a farmers market packed with produce. On a lazy Saturday afternoon at home, you have me roasting grape tomatoes from a local farm.
There are those who hate you, Summer, those who are immune to all your charms, who — very fairly — cite heat and humidity and insects and all that comes with those things, from big hair to incessant scratching of ankles.
And I listen to them, I do. But look, between you and me, none of this matters.
Because for me, it all comes down to this: There’s nothing better than your bounty of fruit and vegetables.
Not the creamy celeriac soup or the roasted roots of winter, or the thin asparagus spears of spring. I like those things, but man, I love your bounty in the warmer months, the way the food stalls overflow with colors and fresh, enticing smells on weekend mornings…
I love, for example, that your tomatoes taste so much better than January’s. I love the way they look, sliced, with juice dripping onto a plate.
And now I love them roasted, maybe more than any other way, when they are shriveled and darkened, crispy around the edges and bursting with juice when I take a bite.
Roasted tomatoes are good by themselves, great in omelets, and fantastic in a panzanella salads whipped up in the late afternoon while the grill is warming and friends are enjoying cocktails and each other’s company on the patio.
I made them this weekend, just before stepping outside, and Summer, let me tell you, this was excellent timing.
This panzanella is uncomplicated, just a compilation of what I had on hand. It starts with fresh grape tomatoes, sliced and roasted with olive oil, salt, and pepper.
The tomatoes are combined with some greens (I used romaine), thick hunks of mozzarella, chopped basil, and diced pieces of thick toasted sourdough bread. Toss with olive oil and balsamic and allow it to sit for a minute, so the toasted bread can really soak in the tomato and dressing, and WOW.
One big bite of this panzanella is delicious, irresistible, fresh, and fragrant. In other words, it’s you, Summer, all you, and that is a very good thing indeed.
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Simple Summer Panzanella
- Total Time: 80 minutes
- Yield: 4 servings 1x
Description
This is one of those recipes with a lot of popular variations, but the key is to improvise, adding more of what you like and less of what you don’t. Combined with the dressing and fresh vegetables, the bread is chewy and satisfying.
Ingredients
For the Salad:
- 2 cups grape tomatoes, halved
- 1 tsp olive oil
- 1/2 tsp salt
- 1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
- 2 big slices crusty sourdough bread
- 4 cups roughly chopped romaine lettuce
- 8 oz shredded or cubed mozzarella cheese
- 1 Tbsp finely chopped fresh basil
For the Dressing:
- 1/3 cup olive oil
- 2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 350°F.
- Place tomatoes cut-side up on a rimmed baking sheet, lined with parchment paper or a nonstick silicone baking mat if you wish. Drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Bake for 50 minutes to 1 hour, until roasted and wrinkled.
- In the last 10 to 20 minutes of roasting the tomatoes, add both slices of bread to the oven on a small baking sheet. Bake until golden and toasted. Chop bread into cubes and set aside.
- In a large bowl, combine the romaine, mozzarella, roasted tomatoes, bread cubes, and basil.
- In a small bowl, whisk together ingredients for the dressing. Drizzle dressing over the salad and toss to combine. Let sit for 10 minutes or so, allowing the dressing to soak into the bread.
- Serve immediately.
- Prep Time: 10 minutes
- Cook Time: 1 hour
- Category: Salads
- Method: Roast
- Cuisine: Italian
Keywords: panzanella, tomato, salad, summer
Cooking by the Numbers…
Step 1 – Prep and Measure Ingredients
Wash all of the produce well.
Halve the grape tomatoes. Chop the basil leaves.
Pat the romaine dry with paper towels or dry in a salad spinner, and roughly chop.
Measure the remaining ingredients. Set to the side in the order they are listed in the ingredient list.
Step 2 – Roast Tomatoes
Preheat oven to 350°F.
Place tomatoes on a rimmed baking sheet, cut-side up. Be sure to arrange them in an even layer without any overlap.
Drizzle the tomatoes with olive oil. Sprinkle evenly with salt and pepper. Bake for up to 1 hour until the tomatoes are roasted well. They should be wrinkled and slightly bursting. Remove from the oven and set aside.
Step 3 – Toast Bread
Place the bread on a small baking sheet and toast in the oven until golden brown, for the last 10 to 20 minutes while the tomatoes finish roasting.
I you don’t have a bakery loaf, a sourdough baguette will also work in a pinch.
Remove from the oven and chop into bite-sized pieces. A serrated bread knife is perfect for this task.
Step 4 – Make Dressing
Add dressing ingredients to a small bowl.
Whisk well, until the balsamic vinegar is fully incorporated.
Step 5 – Assemble Salad
Place the chopped romaine, mozzarella, roasted tomatoes, bread cubes, and basil in a large bowl.
Toss briefly to combine.
Drizzle the dressing over the salad.
Toss to coat, and let rest for 10 minutes. This will allow the dressing and tomato juices to seep into the bread, creating the flavor and texture that this signature salad is known for.
Serve as a main dish for lunch, or an salad for the first course at dinner. It’s also perfect to bring on a picnic.
Improvisation Is Key to the Art of Panzanella
When it comes to a summer panzanella, the recipe doesn’t always have to be an exact guide. Everyone’s taste in salad varies greatly.
For example, you might like more tomato flavor in your panzanella. You can add more, or skip roasting them before tossing with the other ingredients.
Other fresh vegetables like cucumber, bell pepper, and fennel also make tasty additions with some added crunch.
Alternatively, you might want more crunchy bread, or you may even like more freshly cracked pepper, garlic, or anchovy paste in the made-from-scratch oil and vinegar dressing.
What I always recommend with salads like this one is to try the recipe as it’s written the first time, then make adjustments as you like with each successive attempt.
Taste each element as you go along, and have fun with making the salad your own.
Once you try the recipe, tell us your favorite way to assemble it below. Did you follow it to the letter, or make your own adjustments? Leave it a five-star rating if you loved it!
Don’t forget to Pin It!
Photos by Meghan Yager, © Ask the Experts, LLC. ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. See our TOS for more details. Originally published on August 12, 2010. Last updated: July 11, 2022 at 17:06 pm. With additional writing and editing by Meghan Yager and Allison Sidhu.
Nutritional information derived from a database of known generic and branded foods and ingredients and was not compiled by a registered dietitian or submitted for lab testing. It should be viewed as an approximation.
About Shanna Mallon
Shanna Mallon is a freelance writer who holds an MA in writing from DePaul University. Her work has been featured in a variety of media outlets, including The Kitchn, Better Homes & Gardens, Taste of Home, Houzz.com, Foodista, Entrepreneur, and Ragan PR. In 2014, she co-authored The Einkorn Cookbook with her husband, Tim. Today, you can find her digging into food topics and celebrating the everyday grace of eating on her blog, Go Eat Your Bread with Joy. Shanna lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with Tim and their two small kids.
What a beautiful description of summer! We are still in a sauna bath here in the Heartland.
So very pretty in its simplicity. Plum and cherry tomatoes are so sweet fresh, and especially when you bake them. I snack them all the time. I make panzanella quite often but will try to perfect it still. This recipe is the next one to test. And I can’t help but to crumble some goat cheese on top… Love your photography, as always.
i love that picture, third from the bottom. the colors! the juices! oh summer, indeed.
Roasting buddies! 🙂 I did the same thing over the weekend, although I used the results for a roasted tomato sauce. (Sorta wintry, I know, but summer heirlooms rock the socks off winter supermarket Romas.)
And homemade croutons are the best thing ever, hands down. So now I know what I’m making with my CSA share this week!
You know I’m a panzanella fan. Hoping for more this weekend.
I’m in your camp. LOVE summer, but didn’t exactly love it when I lived in Chicago. Man! That was HOT! I left a banana in my car for 15 minutes and returned to find it totally black and mushy. SCARY. I do love this salad, however, and I am a HUGE fan of roasting tomatoes! Yum!
Here’s an honest-to-goodness cooking question for you: How does one “drizzle” olive oil? Do you put it into a container with a small opening (like, um, an actual olive oil dispenser)? Do you just pour very gently from the bottle (I am not good at this)? Do you have some other sort of magic?
I always end up dumping way too much on whatever I’m roasting. Or I oil the pan and roll things around in it.
Jane, “Sauna bath” is a mighty good description around here, too. I will say I’m thankful for air-conditioning, love of summer notwithstanding! : )
Tiina, Thank you for that sweet comment (and the Tweet this morning!). Now that I’ve realized how easy panzanella is, I think I’ll be making more versions, too. At least as long as summer lasts!
Jacqui, Thank you! And right? Summer, SUMMER, I love it so.
Maddie, Ha, roasting buddies!! And a roasted tomato sauce sounds killer. Just the thing to pull out when it IS winter again and we’re all bummed about the blah tomatoes. Smart thinking!
Anne, Panzanella buddy! I loved seeing your version earlier this week. Great minds think alike!
RedMenace, Chicago really gets hit from every end, you know? Crazy cold winters, hot hot summers. This place is something. The vision of your banana blackening in the car is scary indeed, and so not at all hard to believe! Enjoy your current climate, my friend!
Kim, Ha! Well, I can tell you what I do: either (a) just try to carefully drizzle it by barely tipping the bottle and sending it out in a slow stream or (b) putting my fingers over the lid and letting them block the fast flow. That’s all I’ve got! Oiling the pan sounds like a smart option, too. I like that idea.
Mmmm… I like roasted tomatoes!
Great scott you’ve got some great shots in this post!
The wide range of weather is one of the reasons I love living in Chicago. I especially love those days like one we had in June when it was warm & sunny at lunch, severe pitch black storms later in the afternoon, and then cooler & sunny that evening. Panzanella is actually on my to do cooking list. 🙂
Tim, Great Scott! Well thank you!
Vicki, I like that positive outlook, and I’m glad you shared it. Diversity is a good quality Chicago has, you’re right, you’re right. Please help me remember that this winter, OK?
That’s funny, I’ve always just used raw tomatoes in panzanella. Roasted would amp it up a lot, I would think.
I like to throw olives in mine too!
I was just thinking of making panznaella. This is one is so bright and I’m sure delicious.
The best part about roasted tomatoes is the hot juice that squirts out when you bite into them. I love me some tomatoes, but hot and toasty, is the best.
But I think I’ve already established I love all veggies roasted. Mmmm…..
totally agree with ya here. there are certainly days that the heat has driven me bonkers, but then i remember how lame last summer was, and how cold the winters are. it’s all about perspective. and you’re right – you just can’t beat the produce! those tomatoes look excellent!
Dana, Amp it up is exactly the right way to say it. Such a big difference, I can’t even tell you.
Angela, Well, you should! It’s just so summer. I love it.
Niki, YES! Hot and toasty with juices squirting when you bite in – mmmmm!
Heather, “It’s all about perspective” – as so many things are!
Shanna, I love reading your blog & I’m surprised that I’ve never left a comment here. I can’t think of a vegetable that I don’t love roasted. Someone just brought me fresh-from-the-garden grape tomatoes tonight & I think I decided what I’ll do with them =)
-Katy Hornbeck
i, too, love reading this – because you’re so honest and true. and, the recipes are awesome!
Katy! So nice to hear from you! We’ve come a long way from pecan tarts at Country Kitchen, right? (Although, let’s be honest, that doesn’t sound half bad). Hope this weekend finds you roasting those fresh tomatoes and loving them!
JessieV, Well, thank you for that lovely compliment!
I just wrote a post about panzanella myself! I like your version!
Rosemary, Three cheers for impromptu panzanellas! And for summer!
You rock my world. One more way to eat tomatoes – food of the gods.
Sometimes I wonder, usually when I’m scratching both ankles AND elbows, but you know, I’m coming around, and I’d give Summer and her produce the thumbs up in the end, also.
Lovely shots.
Chrissy, Ha! Glad to hear it!
Molly, I know, I know. The bugs are really too much! Thankfully summer makes up for it with all the other things.