My Pizza of the month project is not progressing that well.
Last month I missed the deadline again.
It was not because I didn’t try.
I had a pizza in front of me, ready to be photographed when I realized that it looked almost identical to many of the other leftover pizzas I have published.
It’s not that strange, because the ingredient list is almost the same.
Very boring.
I decided it was time for a change.
So I made a salad instead. A leftover bread salad.
I mean, the whole idea with these posts is not to show pizza recipes but to use food leftovers.
SEARCHING FOR INGREDIENTS FOR A BREAD SALAD
Now, because I have a greenhouse, there is one thing I have a surplus of this time of the year.
Tomatoes.
I also found a piece of a baguette in the freezer. Bread and tomatoes are the foundation for a Panzanella, the famous Tuscan bread salad, but I have already published a recipe for that, so I decided to do something else.
When I searched the fridge, I found a small piece of Parmesan cheese, one bell pepper, and half a zucchini.
I also wanted some fresh basil, but unfortunately, all my basil plants died when we were in Scotland on vacation. But I have plenty of Thyme in my garden. Thyme is a great herb, full of intense flavors, that goes well with most dishes.
I fried the bell pepper and zucchini in a skillet with some olive oil, and I added thyme just before it was time to remove the skillet from the heat.
YOU CAN’T FAIL WITH CROUTONS
I was thinking about doing something cool and different with the baguette, but I ended up making croutons. Not very original, but it’s an almost standard ingredient in salads, and I couldn’t think of anything better.
I shredded it into quite large pieces and fried it with olive oil in a skillet.
I made them crispy on the outside but still a bit soft on the inside.
Panzanella style, you may say.
And yes, I made use of everything, crust included. No leftovers allowed.
Besides, crust make great croutons.
Trust me, I know what I’m talking about. At least sometimes.
The easiest way would be to grate the parmesan cheese and mix it with the rest of the ingredients, but I wanted to make it a bit more interesting.
So I made a little parmesan basket. The procedure is quite simple.
You grate parmesan cheese and form it into a round in a nonstick frying pan. Fry the cheese until it has melted and starts to bubble. Turn it, and fry on the other side before you transfer it onto a tumbler or bowl that is turned upside down.
Shape the cheese around the bowl carefully, let it cool for a minute, and you are ready.
NONSTICK FRYING PANS, IS ANYBODY STILL USING THEM?
There was only one problem.
I don’t have a nonstick pan, only cast iron skillets.
I stopped using nonstick pans a long time ago, and I have never missed them.
Until now.
Trying to do this in a cast-iron skillet felt like asking for trouble. My skillets are well seasoned, but melting cheese?
Instead, I spread the grated parmesan on parchment paper and placed it on a hot baking stone. It worked, but I think you will get a better result with a nonstick pan.
MIXING EVERYTHING
Finally, I mixed the tomatoes with olive oil and a dash of balsamic vinegar.
I arranged all ingredients in the parmesan basket and decorated with some arugula and oregano flowers.
It tasted very much like Panzanella. Perhaps it is a Panzanella after all.
Well, sort of.
It doesn’t matter. The important thing is that I made use of one bell pepper, half a zucchini, a piece of stale baguette, some parmesan cheese, and a lot of tomatoes in this bread salad.
And that is good.
Because food waste is bad.
But you already knew that, didn’t you?
