I've seen a lot of people on social media reminiscing about the last meals they enjoyed blissfully before being quarantined. I can't remember the last meal that wasn't obtained without the thoughts of "omg I might not be able to get this soon" but based on my Instagrams, my last corona worry-free meal might have been lunch at DiPrato's, where I got their Southern panzanella salad, my absolute favorite thing there. This was in late February, when the thought of locking down for what's turning into months, was not even a shadow in our minds.
It's a dish that is both simple and complex, based on the Italian panzanella salads, which feature chunks of rustic leftover bread mixed in with a medley of summer vegetables: cucumbers, tomatoes, and onions. The southern version of it features cornbread, plus the usual vegetables, and some southern flair in the form of blackeyed peas, fried okra, and cheddar cheese.
Of course, like many restaurants, DiPrato's ceased operations during the worst of the viral outbreak, which led me to crave a Southern panzanella salad after looking back on my Instagram to see what my last meal out was. It's the kind of craving that is deep and unrelenting. I thought about this salad for a week, ya'll. I dissected the components of the salad based on the photo, and put those ingredients on my grocery list for the next time I ventured into the world, mask on.
Southern Panzanella Salad
Ingredients
Cornbread
- ½ cup unsalted butter melted
- 1 cup cornmeal
- 1 cup all purpose flour
- 2 tsp baking powder
- ½ tsp baking soda
- ½ tsp salt
- 1 ½ cups whole milk
- 1 ½ tbsp white vinegar
- 2 eggs
- cooking spray if not using cast iron
Balsamic Vinaigrette
- ⅛ cup extra virgin olive oil
- ⅛ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tsp Dijon mustard
- 1 tbsp honey
- ¼ tsp dried thyme
- 1 small clove garlic minced
- salt and pepper to taste
Salad
- ½ cucumber diced
- ½ green bell pepper diced
- 20 cherry tomatoes halved
- ¼ red onion slivered
- 8 oz frozen fried okra
- 4 oz cheddar cubed
- 1 14 oz can black eyed peas
Instructions
Make the Cornbread
- Preheat the oven to 400 F. Put a cast iron skillet (9" or 10" in diameter) on a stove eye and turn to medium heat.
- Add the white vinegar to the milk and set aside.
- Mix all other cornbread ingredients together in a large bowl. Add the vinegared milk and combine just until incorporated.
- Remove the cast iron from the stove and turn off the heat from the eye. Pour the batter into the cast iron skillet and bake in the oven for 20 minutes. If you don't have cast iron, use an 8" x 8" glass baking dish and spray liberally with cooking spray before pouring in the cornbread batter. If using glass, bake for 25 minutes. Use an inserted knife to check for doneness.
- Let cornbread cool to the touch. Cut off a few pieces and cut further into crouton sized pieces.
Make the Vinaigrette
- Combine all vinaigrette ingredients in a jar with a tight fitting lid. Shake til emulsified. Set aside.
Assemble the Salad
- Cook the fried okra following package directions, or use an air fryer set to 400 degrees F for 10 minutes. Set aside.
- Divide the vegetables, black eyed peas, and cheese between two large salad bowls.
- Pour half of the dressing over vegetables in each bowl.
- Top with fried okra and cornbread. Salt to taste and serve immediately.
Save Time on this Salad
At first glance this recipe seems overly involved, but you can break it down into steps to make it easier when it's assembly time! The dressing and cornbread can be made the day before. Then the only thing that needs to be made fresh the day of is the fried okra, which can be cooking in the air fryer or oven while you're chopping the vegetables.
But for this, I did everything at once, starting with the cornbread, and it only took about 35 minutes from start to finish, without even trying to work quickly. Having the cornbread made ahead of time will bring the timing of this salad creation down to the 10 minutes it takes to air fry or bake the okra!
Looking for the best cornmeal you can get? Of course you are. Order Congaree Milling Company's coarse yellow cornmeal online.
And blissfully, summer time and it's bounty of fresh summer veggies is coming towards us, so use the freshest cucumbers and tomatoes you can to fully enjoy this salad to its best potential. Of course, once DiPrato's opens again, anyone in Columbia should head there and snap up one of these salads, along with a tub or three of their famous DiPrato's pimento cheese.
