Spinach Panzanella

Some of my favorite foods are spinach leaves, fresh bread, tomatoes, and fresh mozzarella. When combined I’m on overload. I was at a bakery the other day and picked up a baguette still hot from the oven. While I couldn’t resist tearing off a chunk to eat immediately, I saved the rest for this salad. Panzanella is a bread salad typically enjoyed with stale bread, because it absorbs the dressing really well. I couldn’t wait for the bread to become stale, so I toasted it in the oven.

Baguette, or pretty much any crusty bread.
Spinach Leaves
Tomatoes (quartered if Roma, halved if Cherry)
Fresh Mozzarella Cheese
Red Onions (I didn’t use any this time, but they would be great)
Olives (I didn’t use any of these this time either, but they would be great)
Balsamic Vinegar
Olive Oil
Basil
Rosemary
Sea Salt
Pepper

I chopped up the mozzarella cheese into cube-like pieces and started by seasoning those in a bowl with vinegar, basil, rosemary, salt, and pepper. I think it’s crucial for the cheese and tomatoes to be well seasoned, or the dish is bland. I added chopped tomatoes to this and let the tomatoes and cheese marinate for about 15 minutes. Next, I added the spinach and toasted baguette (which was ripped into small chunks). More salt and pepper were liberally applied followed by a mixture of olive oil and balsamic vinegar. I fail to provide measurements for this recipe because I didn’t measure anything- it’s all based on your personal preferences and what you like. If you don’t like spinach, don’t use as much or don’t use any at all. The same goes for all of the ingredients (although I would argue that all are necessary). The most important thing is that the bread is saturated with the vinaigrette, so take care to do this. I mixed the whole thing up and let it sit in the fridge for about 30-40 minutes to let the flavors soak in. The salad was delicious, and the next day I briefly warmed the leftovers and added them to spaghetti- yum.

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