Summer panzanella

After a very filling Mother's Day lunch -- of which a homemade peach and strawberry pie was certainly the highlight -- I wasn't in the mood for a big dinner. Panzanella sounded perfect. There's a million little variations on the standard recipe, but (no shocker here given my last post) but I really like Gwyneth Paltrow's version. Why? One word: anchovies.

If you don't like them, though, it's still delicious without, but in my humble opinion, you're really missing out.

So if you're either looking for a light meal, a great side dish or don't have the patience to make a 3-course meal, this is a great go-to option. Enjoy :)

Panzanella (serves 4)

Ingredients:

6 oz stale bread, cut into 1-inch cubes (about 4 cups of cubes)
1 yellow roasted bell pepper, roughly diced
1 red roasted bell pepper, roughly diced
1.5 cups cherry or grape tomatoes, quartered
2 tbsp red wine vinegar
1/4 cup plus 1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper
4 olive oil-packed Spanish anchovies, finely chopped
large handful fresh basil leaves

Directions:

Combine the bread, peppers and tomatoes together in a large bowl. Whisk the vinegar, olive oil, salt, pepper and anchovies together in a small bowl and drizzle over the salad. Tear in the basil, toss everything together with your hands and let it sit for at least 15 minutes before serving.

(Image via Sprouted Kitchen; Recipe via Gwyneth Paltrow's My Father's Daughter)