The inspiration for this Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella comes from a spread I saw in a Williams-Sonoma catalog! quite some time ago, and I must say, I’ve never made the recipe as it’s written. I served it as the salad course on my Caribbean Thanksgiving Menu and it’s so good, it’s made it into my regular fall repertoire. I always make all dishes served at Thanksgiving vegetarian (except the main dish). When I have lots of guests coming, I try to make all of the food as accessible as possible, at least in terms of accommodating allergies and dietary restrictions, but tastes, not so much. It’s the Wild West in my kitchen and you just have to give it a try, right? When I decided to make the Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella it was in no way an exception to the feed the vegetarians rule. The original calls for bacon, which I’m sure would be good, but I like it just fine without. The gingerbread croutons are very rich and when paired with pickled berries and onions, well, let’s just say there’s plenty going on. I will admit that I do salt the squash and even the arugula itself liberally, to make up for the lack of bacon and to balance that acidity of the pickles. And it’s a good thing that the gingerbread recipe makes way too much gingerbread for the required croutons, because it’s a really nice gingerbread recipe. It has a spongecake-like quality that I love. I have a great idea for what you should do with the leftovers: Gingerbread Sundaes! If you don’t include this on your Thanksgiving menu, you’ll find that in a slightly larger portion, this Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella makes a great Weeknight Meal. And who says you can’t eat dessert first? All you have to do is make this Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella.
Gingerbread Crouton Fall Panzanella
Ingredients
- 3 cups arugula
- 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil plus more as needed
- sea salt and freshly ground pepper to taste
- olive oil
- Pickled Pearls and Blackberries
- 2 cups Gingerbread Croutons
- 2 cups Roasted Acorn Squash
Instructions
- In a large bowl, add the arugula.
- Toss with olive oil, salt and pepper to taste.
- Add the gingerbread croutons, pickled pearls and blackberries, and squash.
- Toss well. Let rest for five minutes.
- Toss again. This way all ingredients will be well coated, and dressing will just begin to soften the croutons.
- Plate right away or croutons will quickly become soggy (I know, it's a fine line I'm asking you to walk).
Notes
Gingerbread Croutons
Ingredients
- 4 ounces 1 stick unsalted butter; room temperature
- 1 ½ cups boiling water
- 1 cup sorghum syrup or molasses*
- 1 teaspoons baking soda
- 2 ½ cups all-purpose flour
- 1 teaspoons baking powder
- 1 teaspoons salt
- 2 teaspoons ground ginger
- 1 ½ teaspoons ground cinnamon
- 1 cup firmly packed dark brown sugar
- 1 egg
Instructions
- Preheat an oven to 325° F.
- Line a half-sheet (cookie sheet will work) with parchment paper.
- In a large measuring cup or bowl, whisk together the boiling water, molasses and baking soda. Set aside.
- In the bowl of an electric mixer fitted with the flat beater, beat butter on medium speed.
- Add the brown sugar and beat until fluffy (2-3 minutes) stopping the mixer occasionally to scrape down the sides of the bowl.
- Add the egg and beat until combined.
- Beat in baking powder, salt, ginger, and cinnamon.
- Reduce the speed to low and add half the sorghum mixture.
- Add half the flour. Scrape down the bowl as needed.
- Repeat to add the remaining liquid and flour (the batter bill be quite thin).
- Pour the batter into the parchment-lined pan.
- Bake until the gingerbread springs back when touched (20 minutes).
- Transfer the pan to a wire rack and let cool completely.
- For the salad, cut enough gingerbread into ½ -inch cubes to measure 2 cups (you will only need about half the total gingerbread).
- Increase the oven temperature to 400° F.
- Place the gingerbread cubes on the original baking sheet (no need to dirty another pan).
- Toast, turning once, until slightly crisped, 8 to 15 minutes.
- Let cool. Store in an airtight container.
Notes
*I used blackstrap molasses, which is very strong, so I used about 2/3 cup and then an extra 1/3 cup hot water. I didn’t want the flavor to be too overwhelming. Definitely taste this part of the recipe before you add the full amount of the molasses or sorghum syrup. Adapted from Barrett Bridenhagen
Pickled Pearls and Blackberries
Ingredients
- 2 cups blackberries
- 2 cups pearl onions I use frozen; they’re already peeled and prepped
- 3 cups white vinegar
- ½ cup granulated sugar
- ¼ cup sea salt
- ¼ cup honey
- 1 bayleaf
Instructions
- Place vinegar, sugar, salt, bayleaf and honey in a sauce pan.
- Bring to a boil.
- Remove from heat.
- Pour onions and blackberries into a heat safe container. I like to layer them with the blackberries on top to protect them a little.
- Pour the liquid over them. Let steep at least two hours, but you can make them a day or two ahead.
Notes
Roasted Squash
Ingredients
- 1 acorn squash
- salt
- pepper
- olive oil
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400° F (If you’re being efficient, combine this step with toasting the gingerbread).
- Cut the squash in half and remove the seeds.
- Cut into bite-size pieces or slices.
- Place on a baking sheet and toss with a tablespoon of so of olive oil, and a little salt and pepper.
- Roast for 10-20 minutes until the squash is fork tender, but definitely not mushy. Reserve.
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