Panzanella Salad

This salad is a joyful celebration of summer. I never used to be a big salad fan, undressed plain leaves can be disappointing; however when you start to add layers of texture, flavour and varying temperature the humble salad becomes much more inspiring!

It’s also a great way to use up any stale bread, you could even collect and freeze any left over bits over time and use them here to minimise waste. There is something magical about bread that has soaked up caramelised tomato juices and goes all chewy and crispy. And with the addition of the beans this feels like a wholesome and indulgent dish.

Feel free to swap out the beans for your favourite precooked pulse (chickpeas, cannellini, red kidney, butter beans, or even green or black lentils), and use any type of kale or salad leaves that are in season.

Serves: 2 as a main meal or 4 as a side

Time: 20m prep / 30m cook

500g cherry tomatoes
80ml extra virgin olive oil (Honest Toil is my fav!)
Smoked sea salt (I love Halen Môn)
Black pepper
200g salad leaves, washed
200g kale on stems, washed
4-5 slices bread, sourdough or seeded works best
570g jar of queen butter beans (I am Bold Bean obsessed!)

Dressing:
1 tbsp mustard (I used Halen Môn honey wholegrain)
1 tsp honey
1 lemon, juice + zest
3 tbsp vinegar
120ml extra virgin olive oil
Pinch of sea salt

Optional:
Dukkah, or chopped nuts and seeds
Edible flowers, calendula + cornflowers

Method:

1/Preheat the oven to 200 degC

2/Wash the tomatoes and half lengthways. Add to a large baking tray with a good glug of olive oil, a few grinds of black pepper and a large pinch of smoked salt. Place in the oven for 15 minutes

3/In the meantime, prepare the salad. Strip the kale leaf from the stems and wash thoroughly. Tear the leaves into bite-size pieces and place in a large bowl with a glug of olive oil and a pinch of salt. Massage the salt and olive into the kale until the leaves are tender and yield their juices, about 5-10 minutes

4/Slice or tear the bread into bite sized pieces and add to the tomatoes. Mix them together to coat the bread and return to the oven for another 15 minutes. Once cooked the bread should have absorbed the tomato juices and it all should be golden brown and crispy on top

5/Make the dressing by combining all the ingredients in a bowl and whisking together, or in a jar and shaking until combined. You can store this in the fridge and use it throughout the week.

6/Drain the beans, and place in a medium bowl. Add enough dressing to cover and stir to coat the beans

7/Assemble: layer the salad leaves on the plate(s), then the massaged kale, followed by the beans, then bread/tomato mixture, more dressing, dukkah and edible flower petals

I use a variation of this recipe for the seeded bread: https://www.mynewroots.org/2013/02/the-life-changing-loaf-of-bread/

Dukkah is so easy to make at home and it’s a great way to elevate simple dishes and increase your intake of plants. This is a nice recipe: https://www.loveandlemons.com/dukkah-recipe/