Panzanella in Toowoomba

Tinky Weisblat at her blog http://www.ourgrandmotherskitchens.com/ had a post titled “Pestapalooza” http://www.ourgrandmotherskitchens.com/?p=4203 . In this post she had a recipe for Panzanella. I would never have thought to combine lemons and tomatoes. I have been giving this recipe a bit of a try out. Obviously it was high summer in the northern hemisphere when Tinky wrote her post, so normally I would be a bit out of luck in the southern hemisphere however the only shortage was the fresh basil.

Basic Panzanella (after Tinky)

 

• Tomatoes cut into cubes (a couple of tomatoes)
• Basil (fresh is best)
• Capers (1 teaspoonful)
• Thin lemon slices.
• Red wine vinegar to taste (will need enough to help soak bread).
• Olive oil to taste (will need enough to help soak bread).
• Bread toasted and cut into cubes.

 

Tinky recommends preparation 10 minutes before serving and ideally I would also stick to that.

I have found that everything but the bread can be combined before leaving for work. My variations on a theme include using Wendland lime infused olive oil, some olives and a couple of slices of apple. I found a nice stone-ground wheat loaf that seems to provide the kind of bread that goes well with this.

 

It does appear that the standard recipe for panzanella calls for onions not lemons. After my trials, I recommend the citrus themes and I am keen to give kumquats a go in this salad. As a personal note I find the lemon rind and all easier to digest and refreshing to the palate.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Apple Lemonade – Frugal Food

From Fiona Beckett’s The Frugal Cook

I’ve also found a good way of using up the apple peel which is to add it and any leftover lemon shells you’ve discarded after juicing. You simply cover them with cold water, bring them to the boil and simmer for 20 minutes or so then strain and cool the cooking liquid. Result: a very natural-tasting and delicious apple lemonade that tastes every bit as good as those expensive top-end soft drinks.

Sarah, one of the commentators on the post did say this is about as frugal as you can get.