Panzanella

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup olive oil
• 2 garlic cloves
• 1 loaf of good-quality bread (try sourdough, or rustic artisan breads)
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• 1 tablespoon minced shallot
• 2 large tomatoes, roughly diced
• 1/2 red onion, thinly sliced
• 1/2 English cucumber, roughly diced
• 1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped
• 6-8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, roughly diced
• salt and pepper, to taste

Directions

1. 1

   Tear bread loaf into large bite-size chunks. Preheat oven to 400°F.

2. 2

   Finely mince garlic, and saute briefly, about 1 -2 minutes in olive oil over medium heat. Set aside until cool.

3. 3

   Toss bread chunks with 2 tablespoons cooled garlic olive oil, place on a baking sheet and bake in oven until lightly browned and toasted, about 8 minutes, turning at least once.

4. 4

   Combine remaining olive oil with vinegar, shallot, salt and pepper, mix well.

5. 5

   In a large bowl, toss toasted bread, tomatoes, onion, cucumber and cheese with oil/vinegar mixture and basil.

6. 6

   Set aside for flavors to meld for half an hour before serving.