Top Grilled Sides: Grilled Panzanella Salad with Chef Malia

Grilling isn’t just for meats. In fact, this may be a bit controversial, but we love the grilled veggies and sides even more than the main dish! There is just something so delicious about roasted veggies, perfectly charred. We can’t seem to get enough. So when Chef Malia came to us with this idea for top grilled sides and we looked over her menu, our mouths started to water and of course we were all in! Especially when we saw the ingredients for this Grilled Panzanella Salad.

What is a panzanella salad? It is basically a Tuscan salad made with tomatoes and stale (not fresh) bread. We love that this recipe allows us to finish off those final pieces of bread that might have been sitting out on the counter overnight. All you have to do is drizzle the bread with some olive oil, salt, and pepper and then grill it up a little bit. Delicious and satisfying!

Chef Malia wanted to demonstrate grilled panzanella salad, charred salsa, and tomato bacon corn and avocado orzo pasta under the big tent during the Grilling Gala. And the recipes did not disappoint. They are the perfect blend of fresh and charred ingredients. And these recipes come together so quickly and easily. The top tools recommended by Malia include the grill basket, the fluicer, and some Kosher salt. These tools and ingredients make it so you can work as quickly and efficiently as possible while in the kitchen.

Print Recipe

Grilled Panzanella Salad

(1 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

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Ingredients

• For the Salad
• 5 cups of ciabatta bread, ½ inch cube
• ½ English cucumber, remove seeds and medium dice
• 1 red bell pepper, charred with skin removed and medium dice
• 1 ½ cups cherry tomatoes (sliced in half)
• ½ cup pitted calamata olives (sliced in half)
• 1 cup basil, chiffonade
• 1 cup feta cheese, crumbles
• Olive Oil
• Salt and pepper to taste
• For the Balsamic Vinaigrette
• ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
• 2 tsp brown sugar
• 1 Tbsp chopped garlic
• ½ tsp kosher salt
• ½ tsp freshly ground black pepper
• ¾ cup olive oil

Instructions

1

Prepare balsamic vinaigrette by combining balsamic vinegar, brown sugar and chopped garlic into a small bowl.

2

Slowly whisk in olive oil until fully incorporated and then add salt and pepper.

3

Set aside.

4

Preheat grill to medium-high heat.

5

Prepare ciabatta bread by drizzling cubed bread with olive oil and seasoning with salt and pepper.

6

Place ciabatta bread in grill basket and grill for 5-10 minutes or until the bread cubes have toasted. Don’t worry if there are pieces that are charred, they will provide good flavor in the finished dish!

7

Combine all ingredients, dressing the salad to your liking.