Just Plain Panzanella

Just look at that. So simple, so humble, so tasty!

Bread salad with lamb chunks, marinated artichoke quarters, ripe tomatoes and romaine.

Early in the day, I cut the bread cubes from a leftover sour baguette and left them to dry. When it was dinner time, I sautéed them lightly in olive oil in which I had softened two minced cloves of garlic. Set them aside and raised the heat and added some fresh thyme to the pan to sear bite-sized chunks of lamb steak quickly in the same pan so they were caramelized but still very pink inside. Set them aside. Piled the lettuce, tomato wedges and artichokes in a salad bowl and tossed with some balsamic vinaigrette thinned with an equal amount of lemon juice, then added the lamb, the juice from the pan and the bread to toss it all together.

Presented in a wide pasta bowl, it was hearty, chewy and filled with flavor. When the ingredients are good, food like this doesn't need to be fancy. It can be humble and simple and yet still pack a mighty delicious punch.