A Delicious, Tuscan Salad Recipe
Looking for an alternative salad to spice up your diet? Why not take a tip from the people who invented the Meditereanean cuisine? Traveling around Tuscany recently, our ‘in-house’ chef, Jacqueline Mitchell, discovered panzanella, a traditional Tuscan salad. It’s like a salad version of the Tuscan soup Acqua Cotta. The history of panzanella is rooted in the rural Italian philosophy of waste-not-want-not. Using day-old or slightly stale bread and fresh vegetables, this is a dish that is great for whipping up on the fly, while also impressing guests.
As with so many traditional Italian vegetable-based dishes (such as the garden-fresh dish Pinzimonio), panzanella’s beauty lies in its variability: add in what you have around! As a base, it is customary to use bread, cucumbers, tomatoes, and red onion. However, we have seen it served with olives, bell peppers, radishes, and other vegetables. Adding or subtracting from panzanella is all about taking full advantage of what you have on hand and what vegetables are in season.
The special touch to this healthy farm-to-table dish is the way it is dressed. A lot of Italian salads are very simply dressed, eg, Salt, Lemon, and Extra Virgin Olive Oil. This allows the flavors of the salad and fresh vegetables to shine through, while giving you a boost of citrusy vitamin c from the lemon and a healthy dose of polyphenols from the olive oil. Panzanella is no different; fresh vegetables, a squeeze of lemon and a few spoons of La Maliosa Caletra Extra Virgin Olive Oil or La Maliosa Aurinia Extra Virgin Olive Oil will go a long way to create a healthy base for your meal.
What wine would you pair with this dish? One great choice is Tuscan natural red wine La Maliosa Saturnia Rosso. A medium-bodied red wine, it is great to serve even slightly chilled, and its red wine tannins will also give you an additional polyphenol boost.
Panzanella Tuscan Salad
Cooking and Prep Time: 30 minutes
Portions: 2 servings
Ingredients:
4 Slices Stale Bread
1 Large Cucumber
2 Medium Tomatoes
1/2 Red Onion or 1 Small Red Onion
Sweet White Vinegar
Salt
Fresh Lemon Juice
La Maliosa | Caletra Extra Virgin Olive Oil
To Garnish:
Black Olives
Freshly Chopped Basil
Suggested Wine Pairings:
La Maliosa | Saturnia Rosso Tuscan Red Natural Wine
Procedure:
1. Cube the bread slices in large pieces. Place them in a bowl and add approximately 1 cup of water mixed with 2 tablespoons of white vinegar. Let rest, occasionally gently stirring to allow the mixture to absorb and evenly moisten all the bread.
2. Meanwhile, peel and chop the cucumbers, keeping the pieces slightly smaller than the bread cubes. Place in a bowl and salt, leaving the cucumber to rest and drain. Deseed the tomatoes, and chop them in a similar size as well. Lastly, finely slice the red onion. If desired, the red onion can be set in a small bowl with some white vinegar for 2-3 minutes to dampen its pungency. Drain and use in the salad as normal.
3. Begin to construct the salad by gingerly removing the damp bread from any excess water, gently squeezing out any excess. Sprinkle the bread in a large bowl, creating our bottom layer. Remove the cucumbers from the water they released and add them as a second layer. Lastly, add the tomatoes and red onion.
4. Dress the salad with an extra pinch of salt, Extra Virgin Olive Oil, and a squeeze of fresh lemon juice for brightness. Garnish with some black olives and some fresh chopped basil, if desired. Gently stir and mix before serving and enjoy with a glass of Saturnia Rosso Tuscan Red Natural Wine.
Shop La Maliosa Wines and Olive Oils for Your Panzanella Salad.
Saturnalia Rosso, once called Saturnia Rosso, is an approachable, balanced red wine with great texture and expressive finish made from a blend of native varieties from central Italy. A four week maceration on the skins is followed by aging in large wooden casks for 20 months. A pretty ruby color is accompanied by cherry and vanilla spice aromas. Pairs great with pork kebabs and cheese burgers. A woman-made organic, biodynamic and vegan natural wine using the patented Metodo Corino which is based on regenerative agriculture farming methods.
Tastes Like: Cherry and Strawberry Fruit Leathers
Farming & Winemaking Highlights: Regenerative Agriculture | Sustainable Winery | Biodynamic | Native Yeast Fermentation | Vegan | No additives (ie non sulphites added) | Unfiltered | Organic | Metodo Corino | Natural Wine
Fun Facts: The natural farming method that produced this wine, the metodo corino, is actually patented by La Maliosa woman winemaker Antonella Manuli after she helped to develop it with natural wine legend Lorenzo Corino of Case Corini.
A prestigious first cold press monocultivar organic extra virgin olive oil from the Maremma hils of Tuscany which has won best organic extra virgin olive oil from Tuscany! Its polyphenols which are used to determine how good an olive oil is, are exceptionally high!
Top awards include extra gold, as best Tuscan organic EVOO by Biol Novello which evaluates the best olive oils in the world. In the past this olive oil has also won Best in Italy, as well as Gambero Rosso 3 leaves (their highest rating).
Its aromas of grass, green pepper and mint lead to an intense hot pepper taste and a long finish with black pepper lingering in your mouth. Even just a little drizzled over a simple lettuce salad will bring it to life with flavor.
Farming & Winemaking Highlights: Regenerative Agriculture | Sustainable Farming | Biodynamic | Vegan | No additives | Unfiltered | Organic | Metodo Corino
Fun Facts: The natural farming method that produced this extra virgin olive oil, the metodo corino, is actually patented by La Maliosa woman winemaker Antonella Manuli after she helped to develop it with natural wine legend Lorenzo Corino of Case Corini.
This is a woman made, limited production first cold press organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil from the Maremma hills of Tuscany made from a blend of four Tuscan cultivars. Buttery deliciousness with a bitter kick at the end, thanks to its polyphenols. It has won gold medals in a competition which judges the best extra virgin organic olive oils from around the world.
Farming & Winemaking Highlights: Regenerative Agriculture | Sustainable Farming | Biodynamic | Vegan | No additives | Unfiltered | Organic | Metodo Corino
Fun Facts: The natural farming method that produced this extra virgin olive oil, the metodo corino, is actually patented by La Maliosa woman winemaker Antonella Manuli after she helped to develop it with natural wine legend Lorenzo Corino of Case Corini.
Let your taste buds travel to the rolling hills of Maremma Tuscany with this Explorer Set containing a natural red wine and a first cold press organic extra virgin olive oil from La Maliosa. All La Maliosa products are natural, organic, vegan, and farmed sustainably according to the patented Metodo Corino.
Included in this box are:
This special offer set has shipping included for the Continental US and all add-ons have free shipping.
If you are curious (or already a fan) of Orange Wine, add-on with free shipping La Maliosa La Maliosa | Saturnalia Bianco | Tuscan Natural Orange Wine | Organic Vegan.
