Panzanella

Momo, Five, Brother Z and I are in Korea. We arrived last night and we've already had *so* much fun! Not only is the country beautiful, but the people are also just really nice. Whether it was the tiny girl in four inch heels who helped us drag our impossibly heavy luggage down three flights of stairs, or the little old lady who gave us each a dried four leaf clover to stick in our "travel journals"--I have been truly touched by the warmth and kindness of the Koreans we've interacted with. But, as much as I love them, this post isn't really supposed to be about Koreans, it's supposed to be about the panzanella we ate on Mother's Day. So, before I get distracted again, here are the deets:

Image via Simply Recipes

Panzanella

You'll need:

1 loaf of good, hard crust bread

1 large purple onion

2 red, yellow or orange bell peppers

1 orange

1 large cucumber

3 big tomatoes

1/3 cup fresh basil

about 1 cup goat cheese

white wine

balsamic vinegar

olive oil

Cut the bread into 1 inch cubes. Brown cubes in a pan, sprinkling with olive oil, salt, and pepper. Set aside. Cut onion into thin half moon slices. Cook on a low heat in 1/2 cup white wine and 2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar until liquid is dissolved. Dice peppers. Saute in 3 tablespoons balsamic until tender. Peel and slice orange--removing excess membrane. Dice cucumber, tomatoes, and basil. Place in bowl with onions and peppers and orange.

For the dressing: 

Mix 1/2 cup olive oil and 1/2 cup balsamic vinegar. Add two tablespoons honey, 1 tablespoon good mustard,  and garlic salt to taste. 

Pour dressing over vegetable and orange mixture. Crumble in goat cheese. Wait to add the bread until just before the panzanella is served.

Enjoy!

P.S. Stay tuned for more about our trip to Korea!