Spring Panzanella

Written By David Hopfer

Yield: 4 Servings

Prep Time: 35 minutes
INGREDIENTS:

  • 1 lb. sugar snap peas, ends trimmed

  • 1/2 lb. english peas

  • 1 watermelon radish, peeled

  • 4 cups (2-4 generous hand-fulls) mixed spring greens, or spinach,

  • 1 red onion, *use some of remainder for dressing, use ~20-25 thin slices for salad

  • 1 loaf rye/sourdough/any type of bread

  • 1/4 lb. pecorino cheese

  • 1 sprig fresh mint

  • 1 cup toasted almond vinaigrette (recipe below)

  • 1/2 cup EVOO - best quality you have

  • 4 Tbsp. vinegar, whichever you prefer; apple cider, red wine, balsamic are all great

  • 1/2 lemon, juice only

  • 1/2 tsp garlic, dried granules/powder

  • 1/2 tsp onion, dried granules/powder

DIRECTIONS:

1. Preheat oven to 325 degrees Fahrenheit.

2. Bring a medium pot of water to a boil for blanching the peas. Season water with kosher salt until highly salted. Prepare ice bath to shock peas.

3. Once salted water is at a rolling boil, add sugar snap peas and cook for ~3 minutes, or until slightly softened, but still crunchy. Using a small strainer; transfer immediately to ice bath and rest for 2 minutes. Remove from ice, then slice in half, or thirds. Transfer to a dry napkin and set aside.

4. Repeat the blanching process with the English peas and cook for 1 minute, transfer directly to ice bath and allow to cool before setting aside.

5. Take loaf of bread and, using hands, tear roughly 1” odd shaped chunks, and place in large mixing bowl. As opposed to slicing into squares, I prefer this rustic approach to expose various nooks and crannies in the bread.

6. In large mixing bowl with torn bread, add 3 Tbsp of high quality olive oil, garlic granules, onion granules, salt and pepper. Toss well to thoroughly coat, add to parchment lined baking sheet tray, then place in oven. Cook for ~12 minutes, or until slightly toasted, stirring occasionally. Set aside and allow to cool for 5 minutes before adding the rest of your salad ingredients.

7. Using a vegetable peeler, remove the outer layer of the watermelon radish. Next, using a mandolin, or sharp knife, slice radish into thin pieces, submerge the slices in a small ice water bath to preserve texture and color. Set aside.

8. Using a vegetable peeler, shave pieces of pecorino, about 1/4 cup, and set aside.

9. Next, pick mint leaves, about 10 pieces, and tear into small, bite-sized pieces.

10. Once bread is cooled, add all salad ingredients (spring greens/spinach, blanched sugar snaps, English peas, watermelon radish, red onion, pecorino cheese, and torn mint) to large mixing bowl with the bread. Season with juice from 1/2 of a lemon, a pinch of kosher salt, and a few grinds of fresh cracked pepper.

11. Add 1/2 cup dressing to start (use more if desired) and toss all ingredients to coat with dressing. Add to serving bowl, and garnish with additional cheese if desired.

Toasted Almond Vinaigrette

Yield: 1 cup

INGREDIENTS:

  • 1/4 cup almonds, crushed or slivered

  • 1/2 cup vegetable oil

  • 1 tsp. dijon mustard

  • 2 Tbsp. apple cider vinegar

  • Juice from 1/2 lemon

  • 1 tsp. minced red onion

  • 1 clove garlic, minced

  • 1 spring cilantro, chopped fine

  • Kosher salt

  • Fresh cracked black pepper

  • DIRECTIONS:

1. To prepare dressing, begin by heating a small sauté pan over low-medium heat. Add all vegetable oil and almonds. Stir to coat and cover almonds, then add minced red onion and garlic. Stir frequently for ~5 minutes until nuts are slightly toasted and garlic and onions are translucent. Remove from heat and set aside to cool slightly.

2. Using a small strainer, strain oil from almonds. Reserve almonds for salad, and utilize oil to emulsify vinaigrette.

3. In a small mixing bowl, combine apple cider vinegar, lemon juice, dijon mustard, minced cilantro, a pinch of kosher salt and black pepper. Whisk to combine.

4. In a slow steady stream, add toasted almond oil while whisking constantly to emulsify the vinaigrette.

5. Once combined, and all oil is added, taste dressing for balance. Adjust with additional oil if dressing is too acidic, or add another pinch of salt and pepper until desired seasoning is reached.

6. Set dressing aside to use in panzanella salad.

RECIPE NOTES:

  • A panzanella is essentially a torn bread salad. Classic panzanella is made with leftover, stale bread that gets tossed with tomatoes, olive oil, and vinegar. In this recipe sub in spring veggies and feature high quality olive oil & vinegar.

  • I love to make improvisations to this classic Tuscan salad. Make it flexible; choose any bread and pair it with a high quality olive oil. Toss in whichever veggies you choose, some leftover bread, and jazz it up!

  • This dish is unique because it seems to taste better after you let it sit around for an hour or two after dressing. Perfect to make in advance and for larger gatherings. Panzanella is the perfect rustic, yet elegant, way to enjoy good bread, veggies, and an impromptu vinaigrette.

David Hopfer
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