Panzanella
Serves 4–6
Ingredients
4 large heirloom tomatoes, about 1 kg in total, cut into 1 cm thick slices
100g assorted baby tomatoes, cut in half
4 mini capsicums (bell peppers), about 180g in total, cut lengthways into quarters
8 baby cucumbers, sliced in half lengthways
½ red onion, thinly sliced
3 slices multigrain sourdough, about 200g, cut into 2cm chunks and toasted
40g pitted kalamata olives, sliced in half
7 caper berries, sliced in half lengthways
2 tablespoons white balsamic vinegar
olive oil, for drizzling
Basil emulsion
1 garlic clove, crushed
large handful of basil leaves, torn
80ml olive oil
Method
Arrange all the salad vegetables, sourdough chunks, olives and caper berries on a platter.
Place the basil emulsion ingredients in a blender and pulse until you have a smooth sauce. Drizzle the basil emulsion over the salad.
Sprinkle with the vinegar and a little more olive oil and season to taste.
Serve immediately.
Edited extract from The Vegetable by Vicki Valsamis and Caroline Griffiths. Published by Smith Street Books.
Recipe: Caroline Griffiths & Vicki Valsamis