Bread & Tomato Salad

http://www.eatingwell.com/recipes/bread_tomato_salad.html

From EatingWell:  Summer 2004, The EatingWell Diabetes Cookbook (2005)

When it's too hot to cook, just step outside and gather tomatoes and basil from your garden, cut up some day-old country bread and make this flavorful, easy salad, our take on the classic Italian bread salad known as panzanella.

6 servings | Active Time: 15 minutes | Total Time: 20 minutes

Ingredients

• 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1 small clove garlic, minced
• 1/4 teaspoon salt, or to taste
• Freshly ground pepper, to taste
• 4 cups diced seeded tomatoes, (1 1/2 pounds)
• 2 cups cubed whole-wheat country bread, (5 ounces), crusts removed
• 1/4 cup thinly slivered red onion
• 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil
• 2 tablespoons capers, rinsed
• 4 4-1/2-ounce cans sardines, (see Ingredient note), optional

Preparation

1. Whisk oil, lemon juice, garlic, salt and pepper in a large bowl. Add tomatoes, bread, onion, basil and capers. Toss to combine. Let the salad sit for about 5 minutes to allow it to absorb the dressing's flavors, stirring occasionally. Serve at room temperature.

Nutrition

Per serving : 168 Calories; 17 g Fat; 2 g Sat; 9 g Mono; 107 mg Cholesterol; 19 g Carbohydrates; 22 g Protein; 3 g Fiber; 657 mg Sodium; 666 mg Potassium

1 Carbohydrate Serving

Exchanges: 1 starch, 1 vegetable, 11/2 fat (mono)

Tips & Notes

• Ingredient Note: Our test kitchen is fond of Bela brand sardines from Olhao, Portugal. They are firm, lightly smoked and succulent.