Caprese Salad is my all-time favorite salad! I love it so much, that I’m working on variations for all seasons! Tomatoes only come to vine-ripened perfection for a number of weeks, so… we’ll need to get creative when Fall arrives. Right now, we’re eating tomatoes everyday through September and if we’re lucky, right into October.
One of the great things about a Caprese Salad is, it’s so easy to make (10 minutes tops)!
For the tomatoes, I used cherry tomatoes from our garden (Sweet 100’s & Sungolds).
Slice the tomatoes in half, or if you’re using a larger tomato (brandywine is extra good) cut into slices.
Stack the basil leaves and cut into thin slivers just before serving. If your basil leaves are on the large side, stack them, then roll them up and slice them. The technical term for a thin sliver cut this way is chiffonade (pronounced like: chiffon the cake, and ahhhd like promenade).
I like to use specialty sea salts on this salad because the flavors are simple and the sea salt really stands out. It’s important to sprinkle your fancy salts right before serving because they will immediately start to melt and you want to keep the texture intact.
Balsamic Crema is a really nice addition to your pantry because it imparts a lot of flavor. If you just so happen to have good aged balsamic vinegar just hanging around, it’s wonderful as well!
Arrange the mozzarella slice and tomatoes on a small platter or individual plates. Just before you serve the salad, sprinkle it with basil, balsamic crema, and salt & pepper to taste.
When tomatoes aren’t in season, try my Winter Caprese with Delicata Squash.
Last year about this time, we had some wonderful meals at Café Mingo in Portland, Oregon. They used fresh heirloom tomatoes and homemade mozzarella for their Caprese Salad and their Pizza Margherita. Let me tell you, I just can’t get enough of summer tomatoes and creamy fresh mozzarella!
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Caprese Salad
- Total Time: 10 mins
- Yield: 4 1x
Ingredients
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella, sliced
- 4 oz vine ripe tomatoes, cut into bite sized pieces (I used halved cherry tomatoes)
- 8 basil leaves, thinly sliced (2 Tablespoons)
- 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil
- drizzle of balsamic crema or aged balsamic vinegar
- sea salt, to taste
- freshly ground pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Arrange the slices of mozzarella and the tomatoes on each plate.
- Sprinkle the basil over the top, and drizzle with the olive oil.
- Drizzle with balsamic crema and sprinkle salt and pepper to taste.
- You can also pass the the balsamic, salt, and pepper around the table for everyone to season their own!
Notes
This recipe serves 4 as a first course or a side salad.
- Prep Time: 10 mins