Grilled Prawn, Roasted Baby Tomato & Chipotle Mustard Bread Salad

One fine day, as the song goes, I got a note from Colette Becker of Saucy Mama (@SaucyMamaCafe on Twitter). She invited me to participate in this year’s Saucy Mama food blogger contest. Well, it’s hard to say no when an invitation is extended so graciously and a promise of a heap of Saucy Mama products is part of the gig. So of course I said, “Count me in.”

When the package arrived a couple of weeks later, I ripped into all the bottles and tasted each one. I especially loved the Chipotle Mustard and the humongous Jalapeno Stuffed Olives, so decided to use them together in some sort of easy summer main course. This flavor packed Italian Panzanella is the result.

A traditional Tuscan summertime salad of day old, crusty bread torn into rough chunks, tomatoes, whatever else the cook decides to throw into the mix, all moistened with olive oil and vinegar–this strange sounding “salad” eluded me for many years. Frankly, it sounded awful. But a few seasons ago, inspired by the Zuni Roast Chicken with Bread Salad in Judy Rodger’s The Zuni Café Cookbook, I gave it a whirl.

Wow, was I surprised! I’ve created so many varied bread salads since that fateful day that I barely remember all those years of self-imposed deprivation. It’s really one of the finest simple dishes I know.

Even though it may still be hitting the 90’s on some days in your neck of the woods, you’ll need 20 minutes of oven time for roasting the tomatoes. But the rest of the cooking is done on the grill. You can also oven roast the tomatoes in the cool of the evening, a day ahead. They are even more wonderful after marinating for awhile.

Grilled Prawn, Roasted Baby Tomato & Chipotle Mustard Bread Salad

This full-meal salad gets an extra measure of flavor from grilling both the prawns and the bread, and then roasting the tiny tomatoes to concentrate their essence. The Chipotle Mustard provides extra zing and a little spicy heat that I find appealing. The salad may be served either warm or cold.

Chipotle Mustard Vinaigrette
3 tablespoons white wine vinegar
1 tablespoon fresh lemon juice
¼ cup cold pressed, extra virgin olive oil
½ cup canola or other vegetable oil
2 cloves garlic, pressed or minced
1 tablespoon Saucy Mama’s Chipotle Mustard (or 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard combined with 1 teaspoon mashed chipotle in adobo sauce)
freshly ground sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Grilled Prawns
16 large prawns (about 1 pound), peeled and deveined

Roasted Tomatoes
1 pound tiny grape or cherry tomatoes, cut in half lengthwise
8 large Saucy Mama Jalapeno Stuffed Olives (or 16 pitted Calamata olives), cut into eights or quarters lengthwise
2 tablespoons capers
freshly ground sea salt
freshly ground black pepper

Grilled Bread
eight, 1-inch thick slices, Italian Pugliese (poo-lee-ay-say) bread (or other rustic bread with thin crust)
2 tablespoons cold pressed, extra virgin olive oil mixed with 1 clove pressed garlic

Salad
1-3 tablespoons chicken stock, potentially
freshly ground sea salt
freshly ground black pepper
2 tablespoon chopped fresh oregano
finely grated zest of 1 large lemon

Chipotle Mustard Vinaigrette
1. In a mixing bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, vegetable oil, garlic, mustard, and salt and pepper to taste.

Grilled Prawns
1. In a mixing bowl, toss the prawns with two tablespoons of the vinaigrette, cover, and frig for 20 minutes.
2. Just before serving, grill the prawns until pink and firm, about 1-2 minutes per side.

Roasted Tomatoes
1. Coat an edged baking sheet with vegetable spray of oil.
2. In a mixing bowl, toss the halved tomatoes, olives, and capers with two tablespoons of the vinaigrette, and add salt and pepper to taste.
3. Arrange tomatoes, olives, and capers on the baking sheet.
4. Roast tomato mixture at 400 degrees for about 20 minutes, until roasted but not dried out. After roasting, remove from the oven, cover with foil, and keep warm.

Grilled Bread
1. Brush the bread on both sides with the garlic infused olive oil. Grill to toast each side, and then remove from the heat and teat into rough 1-inch pieces. Reserve.

Salad
1. To serve, in a large bowl, toss the tomatoes, prawns, and bread together with ½ cup vinaigrette. If the bread is not moist enough (too hard to chew), add a little chicken stock, 1 tablespoon at a time, until the desired consistency is achieved. The salad should not be wet, however.
2. Salt and pepper to taste, and then divide the salad between 4 large shallow bowls. Garnish with oregano and lemon zest, and serve.

Serves 4.

Cookin with Gas (inspiration from around the web)

• Bread Experience Blog: Pugliese
• FoodGawker Gallery: Bread Salads
• Napa Valley Mustard Festival
• Saucy Mama’s Blog
• Saucy Mama’s Products

Copyright 2008 Susan S. Bradley. All rights reserved.