Shauna's Panzanella

Hey maybe if cucumbers are on sale, I'll add them!

I had this dish made by the lovely Shauna at one of our girls' nights (or baby shower?) and never forgot about it. She was able to send me the recipe on Facebook! Just wanna say, I have a friend that goes to Harvard... Ahaha! Love you girl!


Here's the recipe (it serves about 8-10):

Panzanella:
4 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 cup plus 6 tbl olive oil
1 french baguette, cut into cubes
1 lb cherry tomatoes
2 tsp salt plus pinches for taste
1/2 tsp black pepper plus pinches for taste
1 lb green beans, trimmed
3 tbl balsamic vinegar (white if available)
2 tbl capers, rinsed
1 tsp sugar
1 can (~17oz) white beans (cannellini, northern, etc)
1 lb fresh mozzarella, cubed
1/2 cup fresh basil, chopped

Preheat the oven to 425F. Add half of minced garlic and a pinch of salt to a large bowl and 2 tbl olive oil, whisking well. Add bread cubes ad toss until coated. Arrange bread on a baking sheet lined with foil and toast in oven until golden. Approx 10-12 minutes.

In a large mixing bowl (can reuse the one from the bread), toss green beans with 2 tbl olive oil, salt, and pepper. Arrange on foil lined baking sheet and put in oven (can reuse foil from bread to add flavor). Repeat with tomatoes. Roast until tender but not mushy, tomatoes may finish before beans.

Make dressing in bottom of huge serving bowl. Add vinegar to remaining garlic and 1/2 cup olive oil along with capers, sugar, 2 tsp salt, and 1/2 tsp pepper. Whisk to combine well. Add roasted green beans and tomatoes (along with any pan juices), beans, mozzarella, and basil. Toss to combine. Add bread cubes and toss again.





There are always tons of old(er) baguettes for clearance at Fresh and Easy right here by my house. And as I recall, Shauna said it was better to use stale(r) bread for these. Instead of white beans, I'm thinking of using the leftover pinto beans from lunch. I think that should be fine, right? And ahh, my favorite part of this recipe has got to be those CAPERS! I love them. And fresh mozzarella? What a treat! Tonight we're going vegetarian! I'm gonna make Nora's pesto and Shauna's panzanella!