Salad Recipe ∗ Tomato-Cornbread Salad with Avocado and Cilantro

This tomato-cornbread salad -- a riff on panzella, the Italian peasant classic designed to revive stale bread -- relies on ripe, juicy tomatoes to moisten and flavor the dry bread. After salting the tomatoes, give them a little time to release their juices.

Ingredients

• 5 cups 1/2-inch cubed cornbread made from an 8.5-ounce box mix
• 1 ½ pounds tomatoes, stemmed and cut into medium dice
• salt, to taste
• 2 medium garlic cloves, minced
• ½ large red onion, cut into small dice
• ¼ cup chopped fresh cilantro
• 2 ripe avocados cut into medium dice
• ¼ cup olive oil
• 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
• Ground black pepper, to taste

Cooking Directions

1. Adjust oven rack to center position and heat oven to 250 degrees.
2. Place cornbread cubes on a cookie sheet with a rim; bake until bread is dried out, about 30 minutes, then set aside to cool.
3. Salt the tomatoes, stir in the garlic and let stand until juicy, about 30 minutes.
4. Prepare remaining ingredients; toss with tomatoes. Add bread; toss. Let stand 10 minutes before serving.

Nutrition Facts

• calories233.5
• carbohydrateContent22.8 g
• cholesterolContent15.1 mg
• fatContent14.8 g
• fiberContent5 g
• proteinContent4.3 g
• saturatedFatContent2.7 g
• sodiumContent250.9 mg
• sugarContent4.7 g