With fresh seasonal tomatoes, crusty bread cubes, creamy avocado, extra-virgin olive oil, and vibrant herbs, this Heirloom Tomato Avocado Panzanella Salad is a celebration of summer!
There is nothing better than fresh, local tomatoes in their peak season.
I crave them just about nonstop this time of year. And I’ve been known to eat tomatoes as dinner for almost a week straight!
(Between you and me, I could have happily gone longer if I hadn’t run out of tomatoes and if the farmer I bought them from wasn’t a two-hour car ride away.)
Sliced up and sprinkled with salt, in-season tomatoes don’t need anything else. (But of course a little glug of good-quality olive oil doesn’t hurt!) Panzanella salad is another fabulous option.
If you want to bulk up this salad with some protein, a can of cannellini beans or some cooked, cubed chicken are both nice additions. Or you can serve it along with something grilled for a quick summer dinner that won’t heat up the kitchen.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
- It’s a great way to re-purpose stale bread! This salad is so delicious, you might want to purposely let some bread get stale so you can make it.
- Fresh tomatoes are the star of the show. In summertime, there’s nothing better!
- Avocado Panzanella Salad is not only packed with nutrition and flavor, but it’s also easy to make.
The Best Avocado Panzanella Salad Recipe
This panzanella is a bit different than most. There isn’t a lot of different ingredients in this salad, so flavors really shine through. Make sure you use the best quality tomatoes and avocado you can find!
Sweet summer tomatoes with their hint of acidity are a lovely play off creamy avocado, and crunchy fresh-made croutons are a fun addition to just about any salad.
Ingredients
- Cubed stale bread
- Extra-virgin olive oil
- Salt
- Black pepper
- Avocado
- Fresh lemon
- Heirloom tomatoes (or any fresh local tomatoes you have access to)
- Red onion
- Fresh basil or oregano
Step-by-Step
Step 1: Make the Croutons:
Preheat the broiler. Toss the bread together with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Broil until golden brown, about 5 minutes, tossing a couple times to prevent burning. Cool.
Step 2: Make the Salad:
As soon as you remove the avocado’s peel and pit, squeeze some fresh lemon juice on it. Then chop the avocado and squeeze a bit more fresh lemon juice on top.
Gently toss together the avocado, tomato, red onion, remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add the toasted bread and give it another gentle toss.
Step 3: Serve:
Transfer to a serving dish and top with a few leaves of fresh herbs.
Serve immediately.
Avocado Panzanella Salad FAQs
What is Panzanella Salad?
Panzanella is a salad from Tuscany that traditionally includes stale bread, tomatos, and olive oil. We add avocado for creamy texture, rich flavor, and to bump up the nutrition!
Can You Make Panzanella with Fresh Bread?
Stale bread works better than fresh bread for this salad for a couple different reasons.
Firstly, it absorbs the delicious liquids of the salad better, namely olive oil and fresh tomato juices.
And secondly, stale bread doesn’t get mushy or soggy as fast as fresh bread.
What Do You Serve with Panzanella?
Avocado Panzanella Salad pairs well with a number of different things! Here are a few ideas:
- Grilled ribeye
- Marinated grilled chicken
- Air fryer salmon
- White bean soup
- Warm pasta salad with caramelized leek, bacon, and goat cheese
More Summery Salad Recipes to Make
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xoxo, Faith
Heirloom Tomato and Avocado Panzanella Salad
Ingredients
- 2 cups stale bread cubes
- 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil divided
- 1/2 teaspoon salt divided
- 1/2 teaspoon black pepper divided
- 1 avocado chopped
- 1/2 of a fresh lemon
- 1 pound heirloom tomatoes chopped (or any fresh local tomatoes you have access to)
- 1 small red onion thinly sliced
- 1 small handful fresh basil or oregano leaves
Instructions
Make the Croutons:
- Preheat the broiler. Toss the bread together with 1 tablespoon olive oil, 1/4 teaspoon salt, and 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Broil until golden brown, about 5 minutes, tossing a couple times to prevent burning. Cool.
Make the Salad:
- As soon as you remove the avocado’s peel and pit, squeeze some fresh lemon juice on it. Then chop the avocado and squeeze a bit more fresh lemon juice on top.
- Gently toss together the avocado, tomato, red onion, remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil, remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon black pepper. Add the toasted bread and give it another gentle toss.
Serve:
- Transfer to a serving dish and top with a few leaves of fresh herbs.
- Serve immediately.
Faith’s Tips
- To avoid the avocado browning and the croutons getting soggy, this salad is best served immediately after making it.
Nutrition
This post was first published on An Edible Mosaic on July 16, 2014. I updated it with more information on June 6, 2022.
I’m Faith Gorsky, the writer, cook, and photographer behind An Edible Mosaic. My goal is to inspire you to get in the kitchen and try something new! Feel free to 
This is the perfect summer salad, love those heirlooms!
Definitely one of my favourite ways to eat tomatoes. Panzanella really has everything in it from the crunch to the soft juiciness! :D
i have been doing salads lately too..yours look great esp that avocado and bread.
A fabulous salad and great way of using leftover bread.
Cheers,
Rosa
I so need to make this for dinner tonight. We just got a few beautiful heirloom tomatoes and basil in our CSA yesterday and I have the end of a stale loaf of bread just waiting to be used. Hopefully I can make it look this good!
Summer is not complete without a salad like this! Looks absolutely lovely!
one of my favorites!! YES- fresh tomatoes make all the difference. This just screams summer to me.
yum love a good panzanella.. never used avocado in mine before, definitely something i will be adding next time!