panzanella-style pasta salad

all hail tomato season!

I might make a living off of carbohydrates, but I’m also a proud salad person. I like to make salads. I like to eat salads. I even like to read about salads. Salads have long shed the shackles of their “rabbit food” reputation—so much so, that when I think about salads, I don’t necessarily think about lettuce. Any mixture of vegetables and other stuff coated in a vinaigrette or dressing can claim salad status. And we all know it’s the “other stuff” that makes those vegetables go down easy: meats, cheeses, seafood, grains, legumes…pasta. Last year’s Pasta Salad Series was my attempt to convince you—four times over—that pasta plus salad does not equal sad and weird but does equal fun and delicious. And did you really think I would let this summer go by without another yummy pasta salad to prove my case?

Today’s recipe is inspired by a salad that is, admittedly, already perfect: panzanella. Like gazpacho is to soup, panzanella is a bread salad, a symphony of summer flavors that embraces carbohydrates as tightly as any pasta salad. It’s associated with Tuscan cooking, and modern panzanellas typically consist of dried, crusty pieces of bread tossed with tomatoes, onions, cucumbers, and basil, and dressed simply with oil and vinegar. I love panzanella for many reasons, but one is undoubtably because the bread is non-negotiable: this is not your haphazard crouton, but the crux of the dish. Indeed, the vegetables are secondary and therefore variable, so much so that tomatoes—now deeply associated with panzanella—only made the cut later, in the 16th century, after the fruit was brought to Italy from the Americas.

Perhaps it’s this historic variability that encouraged me to create my own riff on panzanella. Most obvious, of course, is swapping the bread for pasta. In a classic panzanella, the bread soaks up the vinaigrette and vegetable juices over time, and biting into it unleashes a rush of flavor; here, the pasta serves the same purpose. I also omitted the often-included cucumbers, and added a few atypical bits and bobs. Some of these additions are because I partnered on this recipe with one of my favorite Italian pantry brands, Bona Furtuna, a company based just outside of Corleone, Sicily.

This is not my first ode to Bona Furtuna. Their Blood Orange & Olive Oil Panettone easily made my holiday gift guide a couple of years ago (it’s still the best panettone I’ve ever had), and every product they sell is of a similar caliber. Today I’ve used a few things that have been staples in my pantry for a long while (their chili flakes, oregano, olive oil), but also something new: aged balsamic vinegar from Modena, the most recent addition to their product roster. Some of you might know that my love of pasta-making actually began at an acetaia, or balsamic vinegar producer, on the outskirts of Modena, so true Modenese balsamic vinegar holds a very special place in my heart.

Bona Furtuna sells three varieties of balsamic vinegar: a 7-year invecchiato IGP balsamic vinegar (what I used here); a 12-year tradizionale DOP balsamic vinegar; and a 25-year extravecchio DOP balsamic vinegar. In a nutshell, these vinegars are produced in particular places and in particular ways to impart particular flavors—not your average watery, acidic vinegar, but something syrupy and complex, a delicate balance of sweet and tangy. The invecchiato is excellent, far superior to most supermarket balsamic vinegars you’ll find, but versatile and affordable enough to use for both cooking and finishing (they now sell it at Whole Foods!). If you’re interested, I wrote a bit more about traditional balsamic vinegar for Bon Appétit here.

Before I go, I want to mention one more thing that makes this pasta salad sing. It’s a technique that I picked up from Serious Eats a long time ago (they use it in their panzanella recipe), and one that I’ve since applied to many dishes that involve fresh tomatoes: salting. The benefit of tossing the tomatoes with salt is two-fold: 1) The salt seasons the tomatoes all the way through and concentrates their flavor; and 2) the salt draws out much of the tomatoes’ moisture and the resulting tomato water makes a great base for the salad’s vinaigrette. I do this for any salad that features a hefty amount of tomatoes (especially when they’re out of season), as well as for fresh tomato sauces—it only takes a few extra minutes, and the payoff does wonders for the final dish.

So, although I’m a little late for any July 4th barbecues, I hope you’ll consider making this dish over the long weekend, or any summer evening for that matter. Because there’s no time like the present to make a good salad; plus, who needs a federal holiday to celebrate what we’re all actually here for: tomato season!

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Panzanella-Style Pasta Salad

Serves 4 to 6

2 pounds (900 grams) ripe tomatoes, preferably a mix of colors and varieties
Kosher salt
2 garlic cloves, grated
Generous pinch chili pepper flakes
½ teaspoon dried oregano or 1 teaspoon coarsely chopped fresh oregano
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons (30 ml) high-quality balsamic vinegar, plus more for serving
½ cup (120 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
Freshly ground black pepper
½ small red onion, very thinly sliced
1 tablespoon (15 grams) capers in brine, drained
8 ounces (225 grams) casarecce or other short-cut dried pasta of choice
8 ounces (225 grams) fresh mozzarella, torn or cubed into bite-sized pieces
½ cup (10 grams) fresh basil, large leaves torn, small leaves left whole, plus more for serving

Start bringing a large pot of water to a boil.

Cut the tomatoes into bite-sized pieces (core and dice large varieties; halve or quarter small ones) and transfer them to a colander set over a large bowl. Sprinkle the tomatoes with a generous amount of salt (roughly a couple of teaspoons), stir to combine, and let stand 15 minutes, tossing occasionally.

Transfer the tomatoes to another bowl and set the colander aside for draining the pasta—you should have a pool of tomato water at the bottom of the large bowl.

Make the vinaigrette: To the tomato water, add the garlic, chili flakes, oregano, mustard, and balsamic, and whisk to combine. Add the oil, a little at a time, whisking vigorously until combined (it’s okay if it’s not totally emulsified). Season to taste with salt and pepper.

When the water is boiling, season it generously with salt. Add the pasta, stir for a few moments to prevent sticking, and cook according to the package directions until just-tender or your liking. Drain the pasta in the reserved colander and rinse very briefly with cool water (it should still be a little warm to better absorb the vinaigrette).

Immediately add the pasta to the vinaigrette, followed by the salted tomatoes, onion, capers, mozzarella, and basil. Stir to combine, then let stand at least 30 minutes, stirring occasionally. Adjust seasoning to taste.

Divide the pasta among bowls and serve, finished with another drizzle of balsamic and more fresh basil leaves. The pasta salad will get better with time and makes for excellent leftovers!