Panzanella is a Tuscan salad famous for swapping salad greens out for BREAD. Delicious, crusty, craggly, freshly baked croutons that are crunchy, but also soft thanks to the oily vinaigrette they get doused in.
Today’s panzanella is not traditional in any way, shape, or form other than having freshly baked croutons and an oil-based vinaigrette. Instead of the croutons’ traditional panzanella accompaniments — raw tomatoes and red onion — we are tossing them with warm roasted tomatoes, zucchini, and corn. We’re adding shrimp to the equation, too, for a delicious, lean, quick-cooking protein. And topping things off with tons of fresh summer herbs and creamy, briny feta (or goat cheese, if you’d rather).
I am absolutely obsessed with this one!!! The crunchy homemade croutons soak up not only the dressing, but also the pan juices from the roasted veg and shrimp, for the most flavorful panzanella you’ve ever tasted. It’s summer food perfection and comes together in half an hour.
Watch me cook this meal from start to finish in episode three of the What To Cook show!
Let’s talk about shrimp. If you live near the coast or in a town that has a good fishmonger, AKA a business or person that specializes in selling fish and seafood, go there and get fresh peeled and deveined shrimp! If you don’t, or if you just want to buy shrimp from the regular grocery store to avoid making another stop, I highly recommend using frozen shrimp.
Fresh shrimp on display at many grocery stores were previously frozen and thawed for the display case. You can bypass that time sitting out on display by thawing your own! Thaw them for a few hours in the fridge, or, if you don’t have time for that, place the frozen shrimp in a bowl of cold water and they’ll thaw in 20 to 30 minutes. If you don’t even have time for that, run the frozen shrimp under cold water in a colander to melt the ice off the outside. Pat them dry and cook! They will just need an extra minute or two of cook time if they’re still partially frozen.
I’m calling for U-20 shrimp here, so the big guys. They might be labeled “extra large” or “jumbo” instead. If you’re working with smaller shrimp, they’ll need a little less cook time! Keep an eye on them while they broil and pull them when they have turned pink and curled into a “C” shape.
There’s another panzanella salad in the WTC archives that deserves to be cooked this summer: chicken panzanella, which uses perfectly ripe raw heirloom tomatoes, baby arugula, and balsamic vinegar. Another Mediterranean-vibe salad starring crusty bread is my show-off-y Greek salad with grilled chicken and bread. And if you just want more shrimp and corn in your life, you can invite a couple friends over (or not!) and host a Lowcountry boil with peel-and-eat shrimp, corn, potatoes, and sausage. So good and so fun.
Serves 4
Cook time: 32 minutes and 38 seconds
Tools:
Serrated bread knife, if you have one, for slicing the bread
Large serving bowl
Ingredients:
1 medium zucchini, sliced into 1/4-inch-thick half moons
4 ears of corn, shucked, kernels cut off
1 pint cherry tomatoes
Extra-virgin olive oil
Kosher salt
1 teaspoon garlic powder, divided
Freshly ground black pepper
6 cups (12 ounces, about 4 thick slices) really good sourdough bread, cut (or torn) into bite-size pieces
1 teaspoon flaky sea salt
Juice of 1/2 large lemon (2 tablespoons)
2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard
1/2 teaspoon honey
1 cup fresh basil leaves, roughly chopped
1/2 cup fresh parsley leaves and tender stems, roughly chopped
1 1/2 to 2 pounds U-20 peeled and deveined shrimp
8 ounces feta or goat cheese, crumbled
Preheat the oven to 400°F.
Cut 1 medium zucchini in half vertically, then into 1/4-inch-thick half moons. Cut the kernels off 4 (shucked) ears of corn. Place the zucchini, corn, and 1 pint of cherry tomatoes on a large rimmed sheet pan. Toss with 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt, 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder, and several grinds of black pepper. Spread into an even layer and roast for 20 minutes (heads up that we’re going to add another sheet pan to the oven about halfway through!).
As soon as the vegetables go in the oven, prep the bread: Tear or cut about 4 thick slices of sourdough bread into 6 cups of bite-size pieces and throw them on a second sheet pan with 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil, 1 teaspoon flaky sea salt, several grinds of black pepper, and 1/2 teaspoon garlic powder. Use your hands to combine it all then spread into an even layer. If any of the bread looks dry, add a little more oil! Add to the oven and roast for 10 minutes, or until the bread pieces are golden-brown and crispy on the outside, but still chewy inside.
While everything is roasting: In a large serving bowl, whisk together 2 tablespoons lemon juice, 2 teaspoons whole-grain mustard, 1/2 teaspoon honey, and 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt. Drizzle in 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, whisking as you go.
Season 1 1/2 to 2 pounds of U-20 peeled and deveined shrimp with a big pinch of kosher salt and a few grinds of black pepper and let it sit out on the counter while everything’s roasting.
Roughly chop 1 cup basil leaves and 1/2 cup parsley leaves.
Remove the bread from the oven and set it aside. Remove the sheet pan with the vegetables, too. Add the seasoned shrimp evenly on top of the vegetables and drizzle the shrimp with some extra-virgin olive oil.
Turn the broiler on high.
Add the sheet pan with the shrimp and vegetables to the oven and broil for 2 to 3 minutes, until the shrimp are cooked through (they will be pink, opaque, and curled into a “C”). If you don’t have a broiler, just roast them at 400°F for 4 to 5 minutes.
Like always, sit in front of the oven and watch your food broil! Do not walk away and get distracted and let your dinner burn!
Just before serving, add the bread, warm veggies, shrimp, any juices that have collected on the pan, the chopped herbs, and 8 ounces crumbled feta to the serving bowl with the dressing and toss to combine.
Scoop into four bowls, add a little pepper on top, and dig in.
link to printer version
Prep ahead: The veg and bread can be totally prepped ahead of time. Store the vegetables in the fridge (either covered on the sheet pan or in an airtight container) and store the bread in a zip-top bag at room temp.
Halve it/love your leftovers/meal prep it: You could very easily halve this recipe if you’re feeding 1 or 2 people. If you have leftovers, store them in the fridge in an airtight container and eat ASAP. Panzanella is best right away when the crispy bread is starting to soften from the dressing but isn’t mushy yet — but I’d definitely eat leftovers of this if I had them in the fridge! If you want to meal prep this recipe, keep all the parts separate (dressing, veg and shrimp, and bread) and compile your serving of panzanella right before you eat.
Feeding kids: At one point, all of my kids reliably ate shrimp, and it was a glorious time. Frozen shrimp are IMO the easiest protein out there — you can thaw them quickly in a bowl of cold water, then just pat them dry and cook in mere minutes! These days, only my baby will eat them, but that’s OK! George, Tav, and I enjoy this whole meal while the other boys crush the croutons and corn, and I throw a meat stick on their plate for some protein.
Bring it to a party: Watch this episode of the What To Cook show to see my favorite trick for bringing a delicious salad to a party. Here are the Cliff’s Notes: Make the dressing in the serving bowl and cover it with a big piece of parchment. Let the veggies and shrimp cool to room temperature, then add them on top of the parchment. Top with the bread then the herbs, and wrap the bowl tightly with plastic. Once you’re ready to eat, uncover the bowl, slide the sheet of parchment out, and toss! It’s OK if the dressing separated, it will still taste great.
Vegetarian: Swap the shrimp for white beans — add a can of rinsed and drained navy, cannellini beans, or chickpeas to the sheet pan with the other veg!
Dairy-free: Use dairy-free feta, goat cheese if that would work for you, or just skip the cheese altogether. Cubed avocado would be a tasty, creamy, DF alternative.
Gluten-free: Use a loaf of gluten-free bread. If you can’t find good-quality GF bread, you could swap the bread for roasted chickpeas.
Zucchini: Squash, eggplant, red onion, or omit
Corn: You can use 2 to 3 cups frozen corn if it’s what you’ve got (you can add it to the sheet pan frozen). Canned corn (drained) would also work. If you don’t like corn, you can omit it and swap in a red onion cut into wedges, or add another pint of tomatoes.
Cherry tomatoes: Chopped heirloom tomatoes, but remove some of the seeds so there isn’t too much liquid. If you can’t eat tomatoes, swap them for chopped red bell pepper, a red onion cut into wedges, or extra corn and/or zucchini.
Extra-virgin olive oil: Olive oil, avocado oil, or another neutral cooking oil
Garlic powder: Onion powder or 4 minced fresh cloves of garlic (divided)
Flaky sea salt: Kosher salt
Sourdough: Ciabatta, country loaf, French bread, Italian bread, baguette, whole-wheat bread, gluten-free artisan bread. Or swap the bread out for crispy chickpeas!
Lemon juice: A light-colored vinegar like white wine, red wine, or apple cider vinegar
Whole-grain mustard: Dijon mustard, yellow mustard, or omit
Honey: Maple syrup, agave, brown sugar
Basil and parsley: You can just use one rather than both, or you can swap either herb for another soft leafy green herb like cilantro or chives. Arugula would be good here, too!
Shrimp: Chicken thighs would be great instead of shrimp! Add them to the sheet pan at the same time as your vegetables — add more oil and an extra big pinch of salt and few grinds of pepper to make sure everything is well coated. Cook them for the whole 20 minutes then measure their internal temp. You may need to cook them for about 5 more minutes to hit the safe internal temperature of 165°F. The vegetables can cook that extra time, too. See “vegetarian” note above for another idea.
Feta: Goat cheese, fromage blanc, ricotta salata, freshly shaved Parmesan or pecorino romano, or just omit the cheese
Click here for the full index of What to Cook recipes categorized by protein, cook time, and *mood.*
Editor: Molly Ramsey
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