Summer Panzanella with basil-avocado dressing

I’m pretty sure you’ll be amazed by how good and easy this summer Panzanella is. It has greens, stone fruit, corn, bread, and one of my favorite dressings ever: BASIL-AVOCADO DRESSING.

summer panzanella

WHAT IS PANZANELLA?

Panzanella is the name for an Italian salad of tomatoes, onions, and stale bread. But Panzanella has come a long way and now, there are tons of different versions of it.

One variation is that you can make Panzanella with croutons or stale bread. This salad is refreshing, it’s crunchy, it is summery, and even though it is not the classic recipe, I’m pretty sure you will love it.

summer panzanella with cherries and basil-avocado dressing
Cherry tree in Yakima, Washington State.

Why is it a summer Panzanella?

Because instead of tomatoes and onions I used all summer produce. I used cherries and plums, corn and the basil-avocado dressings screams summer all over. Here is a list of the main ingredients.

  • Cherries have always been one of my favorite fruits ever; they are perfect in savory and sweet dishes. You can also cook, bake, eat fresh; they are the best. For this summer salad, Super Fresh Growers sent some of their amazing cherries to my house. They also invited me to their beautiful cherry orchard. Omg, what a place! The orchard is in Yakima, Washington State, and the area is breathtaking.
  • Plums. Plums are so good. Choose plums that are firm to the touch, and it should feel heavy. Cut them in half, remove the pit and slice them thinly.
  • Greens. For my summer Panzanella, I used a mix of greens, but feel free to use what you have on hand. Use spinach, arúgula, or kale.
  • Corn. I love to add corn to everything. Not only gives color, but it also provides texture and makes everything summery.
  • Bread. I use baguette or ciabatta. The traditional recipe calls for stale bread. I genuinely believe this salad was created in Italy to use stale bread, which absorbs the dressing and the juices of the salad and softens it.
summer panzanella with cherries and basil-avocado dressing

and the Basil-avocado dressing

I could talk for hours on how good this dressing is. I love it when you can add a dressing to pizzas, to rice, to Budha bowls, or even use it in a pasta salad. This basil-avocado dressing is that dressing. It also has the healthy fats of avocados, olive oil, and the superpowers of basil.

Basil is good for our digestion, helps with our skin, and many more benefits.

ensalada con cerezas, summer panzanella with cherries and basil-avocado dressing

So here is the recipe for this delicious and different

summer Panzanella with basil-avocado dressing

and I hope you like it as much as I do. The combination of textures and flavors is fantastic in this salad, and the dressing goes well with this flavor combination or any other that you wish.

If you make this salad, please share your creation on Instagram, FB so I can see it. I love seeing what you create! Or save it on Pinterest to prepare later.

summer panzanella

Summer Panzanella with basil-avocado dressing

Alejandra Graf
This salad recipe with cherries is very fresh, easy to make and perfect for the summer. The dressing can be made and stored in the fridge for future use.
No ratings yet
Prep Time 15 mins
Cook Time 0 mins
Total Time 15 mins
Course Salad
Cuisine American
Servings 6 people
Calories 223 kcal

Ingredients
  

Salad

  • 4 large handfuls of greens
  • 1 corn cob roasted and shaved
  • 1 plum thinly sliced
  • 1 cup cherries halved and pitted
  • 10-15 Mint leaves torn
  • Torn pieces of a baguette about 2 cups

Dressing

  • ¾ cup basil leaves
  • ½ avocado
  • 4 tablespoons white wine vinegar or other soft vinegar
  • 1 garlic clove peeled and roughly chopped
  • ½ cup of olive oil
  • A good pinch of salt

Instructions
 

  • To make the salad put all the ingredients on an extended platter by layers. First the greens, the the fruit, the corn and the bread.
  • For the dressing put all the ingredients in a blender continer and blend until creamy and smooth. Check for seasoning and adjust if necessary.

For serving

  • Drizzle some dressing over the salad and finish with the mint leaves.

Notes

Finish the salad by putting one or two tablespoons of dressing on top of the greens, corn, and fruit.

Nutrition

Serving: 1gCalories: 223kcalCarbohydrates: 10gProtein: 1gFat: 21gSaturated Fat: 3gSodium: 5mgPotassium: 208mgFiber: 2gSugar: 5gVitamin A: 334IUVitamin C: 7mgCalcium: 14mgIron: 1mg
Keyword basil-avocado dressisng, summer panzanella

information

Nutritional information of this recipe is only an estimate, the accuracy for any recipe on this site is not guaranteed.

Did you make this recipe?Tag @piloncilloyvainilla on Instagram and hashtag it #alecooks so we can all see your creations.

In this video, you’ll see all the process. I really enjoyed this trip so much! I loved meeting the people that grow and harvest the food we eat, being in the land that grows it and learning all about it truly makes a difference in the way I look at food. It makes me appreciate it even more, and of course, my love and craziness for cherries grew like 1000 times more.

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