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Brussels Sprouts Panzanella with Bacon and Fall Fruits

A colorful harvest salad that celebrates everything that’s good about fall. It can easily be doubled to feed a bigger crowd. If you are serving this to a vegetarian, simple leave out the bacon. 

Prep Time 30 minutes
Cook Time 30 minutes
Total Time 1 hour
Servings 6
Calories 195 kcal
Author Katie Morford

Ingredients

  • 1 ½ pounds Brussels sprouts
  • 2 ½ tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided
  • 1/2 teaspoon salt, plus 1 pinch, divided
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 3 thick slices Levain, sourdough, or Italian bread
  • 2 slices thick cut bacon or 3 slices regular bacon (optional for vegetarian version)
  • 3 scallions, thinly sliced white and light green parts only
  • 1 medium tart apple, such as Pink Lady or Granny Smith, diced
  • 2 Fuyu persimmons, peeled and diced
  • 1/3 cup diced Parmesan cheese
  • 1 tablespoon lemon juice
  • Sprouts Organic Balsamic Vinegar Glaze for drizzling on top

Instructions

  1. Preheat over to 425 degrees F.
  2. Trim off the ends of the Brussels sprouts and cut in half through the stem. Pile onto a large baking sheet, drizzle with 1 tablespoon olive oil, sprinkle with ¼ teaspoon salt, and a generous amount of black pepper. Toss well, spread out on the pan.

  3. Tear the bread slices into ½-inch pieces. Tear enough bread to fill 2 heaping cups. Pile the bread onto a second large baking sheet. Drizzle with 1/2 tablespoon olive oil, add 1 big pinch of salt, and toss together. Spread over one half of the baking sheet. Lay the bacon slices on the opposite end of the baking sheet (keep the bacon quite separate from the bread).

  4. Put both baking sheets into the oven. After about 12 minutes, when the bread is lightly brown, remove that pan from the oven, being careful that the bacon grease doesn’t drift onto the bread. Transfer the bread to a large plate or medium platter. Return the bacon to the oven and continue to cook until brown and crisp, another 10 minutes or so. Transfer the bacon to a paper towel. Shuffle the Brussels sprouts on the pan and continue to cook another 8 minutes or so until tender and caramelized (total cooking time for the Brussels sprouts is about 30 minutes). Remove from the oven.

  5. Chop the bacon into small pieces and add to the toasted bread along with the scallions, apple, persimmons, Parmesan, and Brussels sprouts. Add the remaining tablespoon olive oil, lemon juice, and remaining 1/4 teaspoon salt. Toss well, taste, and add more salt or lemon as desired. Lighly drizzle the top of the salad with the balsamic glaze. Serve.