I’m not Italian. So, totally, not even close. Even if one of my ancestors contributed a teensy amount of Italy to my melting-pot blood, I’m thinking it turned out to be a recessive thing.

Which is kind of a bummer, really. I’m so white bread. I don’t have the first clue how to say “mozzarella” or “biscotti” like Giada does. Eating that stuff, though, is a different story. I am pretty good at that.

Italian food. I don’t think there’s any cuisine I love more. Espresso, cheese, wine, pasta, pesto, olives, basil, tomatoes tomatoes everywhere.

And Panzanella, also known as Italian bread salad. I’m sure my version – based on the Ina Garten version and the version I personally think is the most perfect salad ever – is Americanized to the nth degree. It’s also insanely delicious.

The bread is more like big, beautiful croutons than limp mounds of soggy stuff (which, I admit, the first time I heard of bread salad, this is what I imagined). Olive-oil-toasted bread hunks along with rustic chops of green and red peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, sweet onions, green olives, and basil plucked fresh from the garden, then tossed with a nice olive oil and balsamic dressing kissed with Dijon mustard. This stuff makes me want to write run-on sentences.

Here in Seattle, we’re finally seeing a few tomatoes ripen. Why not find a use for that half loaf of stale bread you’ve got laying around, and a couple of those amazing tomatoes? Oh, and here’s the audio file of how to pronounce “Panzanella” so you don’t have to go around saying “Panzaneeya” or “Panz… [mumble, trailing off].” Not that I ever did such a thing.

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Perfect Panzanella Salad Recipe

Olive-oil-toasted bread hunks, rustic chops of green and red peppers, tomatoes, and more – plus basil plucked fresh from the garden. Perfect panzanella indeed.

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 30 minutes minutes

Servings 4

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 3-4 cups bread cubes from a one, two, or even three day old loaf of rustic, crusty bread. This is the perfect use for half that leftover baguette, I think.
• 5-6 tablespoons olive oil
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 medium green bell pepper cut into bite-size chunks
• 1/2 medium red bell pepper cut into bite-size chunks
• 2 medium tomatoes cut into wedges
• 1/2 medium cucumber peeled and cut bite-size chunks
• 1/2 medium sweet onion red works too, if you like, sliced
• 15 leaves fresh basil chiffonaded
• 15 or so green olives cut in half if they’re big

Vinaigrette dressing:

• 1/4 cup olive oil
• 1 1/2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar I’m sure regular ol’ balsamic would be equally tasty
• 1/4 teaspoon Dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon finely minced garlic
• 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt
• Fresh ground black pepper to taste

Instructions

• Heat 3 tablespoons of the olive oil in a large saute pan. Medium heat.
• Keeping the heat on medium, add the bread cubes and the salt, and toss.
• Stir frequently, for about 10 minutes, until the cubes are nice and toasty and brown. Add more olive oil as you go – 1 tablespoon at a time – when the pan starts looking too dry. I usually end up using about 6 tablespoons of olive oil.
• Remove bread cubes from heat.
• Add the veggies, basil, and olives to the bowl.
• Make the viniagrette: In a small bowl, whisk together all the ingredients.
• Add the bread to all of those good-looking veggies, pour in the vinaigrette, and toss well.
• Top with a sprinkling of more kosher salt and fresh ground black pepper, to taste. Serve.

Notes

Adapted from Ina Garten

Originally published July 16, 2010

The post Panzanella Salad appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

So when I decided to serve a chilled soup shooter recipe for my plant-based canapé party, I thought it was the perfect time to bring the idea to fruition. No pun intended. You know, because tomatoes are a fruit?

Moving on …

This recipe has a longer list of ingredients than most of mine do. That’s because I wanted to get a little more fancy schmancy than my norm for my class.

But this soup is still super simple to make – just throw the ingredients in the blender, pour into glasses, garnish, done!

Flavor-wise, it took me a bit of tinkering to get the gazpacho just right. In the end, two traditional ingredients – almonds and bread – got the texture to where I wanted it.

Yep! Almonds and bread. Not necessarily something you’d expect, just looking at it, but there you have it. (Note that you can totally leave one or both out if they seem weird to you – the soup might just be thinner and not quite as full-bodied).

Tomato juice, on the other hand, is not necessarily a traditional gazpacho ingredient, but I felt this one needed it to make it more Bloody-Mary-like.

And then we have shallots, garlic, tomatoes, cucumbers – stuff you’d find in a regular gazpacho that gives it heaps of flavor. Along with Worcestershire, horseradish, and Tabasco. Because hello Bloody Mary.

But the best part of this recipe is how you dress it up. I used cute little 1/2 pint Weck jars dipped lightly in a mix of celery salt and freshly cracked black pepper, assembled skewers with green olives and a baby pickle, and then plopped a celery stick in for good measure. It’s a salad … it’s a soup … it’s a mocktail … it’s whatever you want it to be! Oh, and it’s really really tasty, too.

Creamy, zingy, just the right amount of spice. I love how refreshing this soup is on a hot summer day.

Tip: Make the soup and prepare the garnishes ahead of time, then refrigerate overnight or even for a couple of days. The flavors of the soup will have longer to develop – making it even more tasty – and serving these Bloody Mary Gazpacho Shooters to guests will be a breeze.

(more…)

The post Bloody Mary Gazpacho Shooters appeared first on Kitchen Treaty.

Table of Contents

• The Story Behind the Recipe
• Olive Hummus Ingredients
• More Hummus Recipes

• Jump to Full, Printable Recipe
• Read Reviews & Comments

The Story Behind the Recipe

This recipe started out as the slightly more exciting “Three Olive Hummus,” but when I realized I was out of plain black olives, I went with two olives instead. And it was just as tasty, so I went with it. Changing the “three” to a “two” doesn’t sound nearly exciting, so simple, plain “olive hummus” it is!

Except this green olive and kalamata olive hummus doesn’t taste plain at all. It’s … sort of like hummus amped up with tapenade. Except simpler. And a little more interesting and colorful than your standard hummus.

And it is, quite frankly, an olive lover’s dream.

Olive Hummus Ingredients

• Chickpeas, tahini, lemon, and garlic – standard hummus fare
• Plus! Some pitted kalamata olives AND green olives with pimento. Yum!
• Oh, and don’t forget the salt along with the olive oil and smoked paprika garnish.

Served with multigrain chips, homemade everything crackers (yesssss), red bell pepper slices, or carrot sticks, this hummus makes a great game-day appetizer or any-day snack for anyone. Except for my guy, who hates olives. And my toddler, who won’t touch hummus these days.

Ah well. More for me!

More Hummus Recipes

I’m kind of a hummus fan – with over half a dozen different recipes on my site!

• Classic hummus – straight up. And here’s a big-batch version, perfect for freezing (yes, you totally can!)
• These hummuses are super colorful. First, vibrant magenta roasted beet hummus. The green is so glorious in this spinach hummus recipe that the word “glorious” made it to the name! And how about marigold yellow in this curried pumpkin hummus (try it!)
• This jalapeño black-eyed pea hummus is sure to bring you luck every new year.
• Sunbutter hummus is for the sunflower seed lover!
• This loaded roasted red pepper hummus brings it allll to the table.

Whew! Still with me on olive hummus? Perfect! Here’s the full, printable recipe.

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Olive Hummus Recipe

Salty kalamatas and pimento-stuffed green olives lend a little pizzazz to plain ol’ hummus.

Prep Time 10 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Calories 157kcal

Author Kare

Ingredients

• 1 15-ounce can chickpeas (aka garbanzo beans) drained, but reserve the liquid
• 1/3 cup tahini
• 3 tablespoons freshly squeezed lemon juice from 1-2 lemons
• 2 minced garlic cloves
• 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt plus more to taste
• 3/4 cup kalamata olives pitted
• 3/4 cup green olives with pimento
• Olive oil smoked paprika, and additional sliced olives for garnish

Instructions

• To the bowl of a food processor or high-powered blender, add the chickpeas, tahini, lemon juice, garlic, and 1/2 teaspoon salt. Pulse, adding the liquid from the beans as needed to keep things moving, until the hummus is very smooth.
• Add the olives and pulse until chopped. I like to whirr them almost completely in; you may prefer a chunkier hummus. Taste and add additional salt if desired.
• Scoop into a serving bowl and top with additional sliced olives, a sprinkle of smoked paprika, and a drizzle of olive oil, if desired.
• Keeps refrigerated in an airtight container for 3-4 days.

Nutrition

Serving: 1/12 of recipe | Calories: 157kcal | Carbohydrates: 5g | Protein: 3g | Fat: 13g | Sodium: 677mg | Fiber: 1g

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