Chef Chris Viaud’s Panzanella Salad

Ingredients

For the salad:

• About 4 large ripe tomatoes, sliced
• A handful of cherry tomatoes, chopped
• 2 or 3 small mild peppers such as shishito peppers, thinly sliced
• 1 small red onion, thinly sliced
• 1 cup lightly steamed green beans, chopped (optional)
• 1 cup sliced snap peas (optional)
• 1 cup sliced radishes (optional)
• 1 medium cucumber, thinly sliced
• 1 small round loaf of crusty country bread, cubed into 1 inch pieces (about 6 cups)
• Fresh herbs for garnish (chopped chives, basil leaves, etc)
• Salt and pepper, to taste

For the dressing:

• 2 Scallions
• ¼ bunch of parsley
• 1 ½ oz of garlic
• ¼ of a large onion
• 1 Tbsp Thyme leaves
• ¼ each red, green, yellow and orange bell peppers
• ¼ habanero pepper (more or less depending how hot you want it)
• 2 Tbsp. olive oil
• Juice of ½ lime
• Salt to taste

Instructions

1. 1
   Add all the dressing ingredients to a blender and blend well. Taste and add additional salt if needed and blend again.
2. 2
   In a large bowl, toss all the salad ingredients with the dressing (except the large tomato slices and fresh herbs) with the dressing. Mix well and allow to sit for 30 minutes for the flavors to blend.
3. 3
   On a large plate or low rimmed bowl, arrange the tomato slices so they overlap nicely. Season with salt and fresh cracked pepper, to taste.
4. 4
   Place the tossed salad on top of the tomato slices. Then add the fresh herbs on top to garnish. Enjoy!