(Grilled Peppers and Torn Mozzarella Panzanella) Smittened Again

This past weekend we had dinner with our “Gourmet Club”. A group of us, 5 couples, started the club when our kids were in preschool. It was a way of committing to a grown-up event, enjoying a nice meal and great conversation, sans kids, balloons, and crayons.
Initially, our goal was once a month, and we would each take a turn at hosting. The host picked the menu and made the main dish. The other couples provided the rest.

Well, with baseball, hockey, soccer practices, piano lessons, homework, not to mention work…monthly became every couple of months.  As the kids went in different directions, so did we, and our dinners became much more sporadic. The old adage, time flies rings true. It has been at least 8 years since our last get-together 🤦🏻‍♀️. Our kids are now all in their twenties…I gotta chew on that for a minute, so it was time to have another dinner. We were long overdue.

Good Food, Great Friends

We talked, laughed, bragged, and complained about our kids, parent’s prerogative. We drank way too many Mai Tais and ate way too much food. Besides Glen’s traditional toast, the best part of the evening was just being together again and enjoying each other’s company.

The days of “gourmet” meals are long gone, perhaps a reflection of where we are in our lives now, the food is unfussy, delicious, and comforting.  We were such blowhards back in the day, now, if we want a fancy-schmancy meal, we’re going out.  Casual is probably not quite accurate as our buffet included a platter of warm Roasted Cauliflower with a Raisin Caper Sauce from Serious Eats, a classic Greek Salad of garden tomatoes, cucumbers, feta, and onions, and a delicious stuffed pork roast.

I know, y’all are thinking, ok Deb…What did you bring to the table?

As I was looking for inspiration, a mouthwatering Grilled Peppers and Torn Mozzarella Panzanella popped up on my feed from Smitten Kitchen.  Deb Perelman rocks.  Maybe it’s a Deb connection, but this isn’t the first time a Smitten Kitchen recipe has popped up when I needed something delicious.

This dish couldn’t be easier. Why?  Peppers, red onions, and a nice crusty bread are tossed in garlic, oil and GRILLED and…yay for me, hubby does ALL the GRILLING in our house. Yep. I prepped the veggies and bread and handed them off to Wes. Just like magic, while I was eating Bon Bons (jk), they came back perfectly grilled.  Call it the grillin’ and chillin’ method.  He grills while I chill-perfect!  All I had to do was make a simple vinaigrette, let the peppers soften, tear up the bread and mozzarella, and toss it all in a bowl with the dressing, fini, and Panzanella ready to go.  So good, so easy.  Folks, you need to file this under “so gonna make this”.

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Grilled Peppers and Torn Mozzarella Panzanella

Course Salad

Cuisine Italian

Keyword Panzanella

Prep Time 20 minutes minutes

Cook Time 20 minutes minutes

Total Time 40 minutes minutes

Servings 6 people

Ingredients

Hubby's Part:

• 4 1- inch slices bread country-style
• 3 large red bell peppers halved, seeds removed
• 1 medium red onion peeled and cut into 1/2-inch wedges
• 3 tablespoons olive oil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

My Part:

• 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar
• 1 garlic clove minced
• 1/2 teaspoon sugar
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 1 tablespoons capers drained (rinsed if salted)
• 4 ounces mozzarella torn into bite-sized pieces, or 4 ounces bocconcini
• Fresh herbs — snipped chives basil, or parsley or a mix thereof — to finish (optional)

Instructions

• First Part is Mine: Place bread, pepper halves, and onion wedges in a large bowl and drizzle with 3 tablespoons olive oil, then sprinkle 1 teaspoon kosher salt and many grinds (or about 1/4 teaspoon) black pepper. Use your hands to toss everything together until oil coats everything.
• Part I Get to Ignore: Heat your grill to medium-high. Spread peppers and onions across grill grates and grill, lid down, flipping as needed until onions are charred in spots (they’ll be done first) and peppers are blistered and blackened in many spots and beginning to soften. Transfer onions to a plate as they’re done; transfer peppers to a bowl. Use bread in bowl to swipe up any excess salt, pepper, and/or oil in it and place slices on grill. Grill until toasted on both sides. Transfer to plate with onions.
• Back to Me: Place foil or a lid over peppers in bowl to trap heat. Once they’re cool enough to handle, remove as much of the skin as you can. Cut peppers into 1/2- to 1-inch wide strips.
• In the bottom of a large bowl, whisk together sherry vinegar, remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, sugar, about 1/4 teaspoon kosher salt (and more to taste), and garlic. Add capers. Add peppers to the bowl and let them marinate for as little as 5 minutes or up to a day, even. The longer they souse, the more pickled they’ll taste. After 5 minutes, however, they still have plenty of flavor.
• To assemble and serve: Right before you’re ready to serve the salad, add onions to the bowl with the peppers. Tear bread into chunks and add to bowl, along with mozzarella. Mix gently, making sure the dressing coats the bread. Taste and add more seasoning if needed. Finish with basil and chives.