Summer Bread Salad

Well, July 4 is now behind us, but we won't forget the family -- or the food -- from this weekend. As the plans for the get-together were gelling, Melissa saw some recipes for bread salad that she based ours off of.

It was a side dish she made to bring to the family gathering and, as always, it got good marks from testers aka our family. It's a nice, light dish to accompany any summer gathering.

Summer Bread Salad
1/2 ciabatta loaf
olive oil
salt and pepper
1 garlic clove
6 tomatoes, roughly cut
1 English cucumber, cut (or regular cucumber with inside scooped out)
1/2 cup basil, julienned
8 ounces Crave Brothers pearl mozzarella
Dressing
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup olive oil
1/2 lemon, juiced
1 tablespoon honey
3 or 4 basil leaves, cut finely
1 teaspoon dijon mustard
salt and pepper

1. Cut the loaf in half and rub with garlic clove. Cut into squares and leave out to harden overnight.

2. Drizzle olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper over the ciabatta cubes. Bake for 10 to 15 minutes at 375 degrees.

3. Combine dressing ingredients in bowl and shake thoroughly.

4. Combine the bread salad ingredients into a bowl immediately before serving. We used red, orange and yellow tomatoes that we purchased from the Brookfield Farmers Market as a way to infuse color into the dish.

UPDATE (7/18/11): Welcome Post-College Kitchen readers! Dan messed up; only half of a ciabatta loaf is needed.