No Assembly Required - Summer Bread Salad

I have been assembling a lot of Ikea furniture for the new apartment. There is only the “right” way to do this. If you have any pieces left at the end you are in trouble. Bread salad has no right or wrong way and no real recipe necessary. It goes together easily, uses up stale bread and bursts with the great tastes of August tomatoes and basil. Home grown tomatoes are key to this salad but if you want to make it in the winter plum tomatoes or cherry tomatoes will do.
Cut a loaf of day old good bread into bite sized cubes. Toss into a bowl. Cut up homegrown tomatoes or the best ones from the farmer’s market into similar sized cubes. Toss in. Cut one ball of fresh mozzarella into cubes. Toss in bowl. Chop or chiffonade some fresh basil. (here is how to chiffonade) Toss in.

At this point you declare it ready or add some cucumber, red onion, or any fresh ingredients you love in a salad. To dress just splash with red wine vinegar, drizzle with a little good quality olive oil. Season generously with salt and pepper. Serve immediately if you like your bread a little chewy or wait an hour for it to soak up all the tomato juices. I like it both ways. I have also used fresh bread but I make sure it is a chewy dense bread like a ciabatta, a bread too pillowy and soft will dissolve.

No worries with this salad. The only real requirements are good tomatoes and good bread and basil. No serious instructions required. But whatever you do don't do this:

 

Shaved Asparagus Salad

This is a perfect spring time recipe when the first asparagus appears at the farmer's market. For those of us that live in colder climates that time is now. My California friends have probably been eating home grown asparagus for months!

Shaved Asparagus Salad

Comforts Shaved Asparagus Salad has received cheers from its customers. It uses raw, thin sliced asparagus and if you’ve never tried raw asparagus, it can transform asparagus haters in a minute.

Serves four

12 large asparagus, with the tough ends snapped off
2 hard boiled eggs, peeled
½ cup dried tomatoes, julienned
¼ cup pine nuts, toasted lightly in a dry sauté pan
4 slices bacon, cut into ½ pieces and cooked crisp (optional)
8 cups loosely packed mixed Salad Greens, washed and dried
Champagne vinaigrette:
5 Tbsp. mild olive oil
2 ½ Tbsp. Champagne vinegar (or lemon juice)
2 tsp. Dijon mustard
½ tsp. ea. salt and fresh ground pepper
2 tsp. honey

Make the dressing: Place all the dressing ingredients in a small covered jar and shake until combined or blend with a stick blender.

Lay three stalks of asparagus on a cutting board and slice as thinly as possible on the diagonal. Repeat with the remaining asparagus. Place the torn salad greens in a bowl and dress lightly with the vinaigrette, reserving some of the dressing for the asparagus. Divide the lettuce among four salad plates and top equally with the nuts, dried tomatoes, and bacon. Using the largest holes on a box grater, grate the hard boiled eggs over the salads, about a half egg per plate. Now add the asparagus to the bowl you tossed the greens in and dress lightly. Divide the asparagus on top of the four salads equally.

Have fun with this salad by adding your favorite chevre or feta cheese. Use a regular Spring Mix salad blend, all frisee or no lettuce at all. Replace the pine nuts with toasted pecans or even candied walnuts. Serve over a bed of thinly sliced tomatoes when they come into season instead of dried tomatoes. Instead of a hard boiled egg, serve a poached egg on top. The possibilities are endless!


This recipe is courtesy of Glenn Miwa. It is one of the many I am testing for a Comforts cook book.
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