Caprese Salad -

I have to say, the Fall is probably the one time a year I actually have an easy time coming up with recipes for “Meatless Mondays.” The harvest is abundant and I love the produce which comes out of it. Tomatoes are no exception. A good tomato can seriously make me fall in love. I had an acquaintance in law school who found out I loved food. He offered me a bag of fresh, home-grown tomatoes from his family’s Napa garden, and I’m not sure I would be exaggerating if I said this was the moment I knew we had to be friends. He brought me so many tomatoes that year I had to make pasta with tomatoes three times just to make sure I didn’t let any of the beautiful, multi-colored fruit go to waste–and that was with eating salads and raw tomatoes almost every day for approximately 2-3 weeks in the interim.

Honestly, I think I probably owe that entire friendship to this salad. I’m 99% sure I was eating this simple, yet fabulous salad one day in the school lunch room, and he asked me about it. That led to a conversation about my obsession with food–which, in turn, led to his offer of tomatoes. We’ve been friends ever since.

While you can make this salad out of the organic, on-the-vine tomatoes you get in the grocery store, I would only recommend it if you’re craving it and don’t have access to the good home grown or farmer’s market ones. If you do buy the grocery store tomatoes, try and find heirloom varieties and make absolutely sure you smell them to get the most flavorful ones you can find. If you were to instead eat this with semi-flavorless hot house tomatoes, you’d likely feel like you were eating flavored cheese with a mealy filling–so not worth it. You can absolutely change up the types of vinegar or oil you use. There are great finishing oils on the market now with wonderful flavors that are a great accent to this salad. But for the vinegar, I found this Rachel Ray Balsamic Glaze and never went back. Though different flavors are fun to play with, it’s my Old Reliable and I rarely switch.

I love this salad as a side at early Fall evening BBQ’s, or even, as I had it that fateful day early in law school, all on its lonesome for a late Summer lunch.

So cheers to the Fall abundance! Soak up as much as you can. And hey, if someone asks you about your salad one day, start a conversation with them. You may just find yourself a kindred food spirit, produce supplier, and life-long friend like I did.

Happy Cooking!

Caprese Salad

Tomatoes of all shapes, sizes and colors (approx. 1-2 medium per person served)
1/2 oz. Fresh Mozzarella per person served (or 1 oz. if this is the main dish)
One Basil Leaf per serving
Course Sea Salt
Fresh Ground Pepper
Drizzle of Olive Oil (feel free to use infused oils in different flavors. Here, my favorites are garlic, herb and basil)
Drizzle of Rachael Ray Balsamic Glaze

Slice the tomatoes and the mozzarella and stack them in succession.

Break the Basil leaves in half and insert them into the stacks.

Sprinkle or Grind both the Salt and Pepper to taste over the stacks.

Drizzle desired amount of Oil and Vinegar Drizzle over the stacks.

**This recipe is also great with a small slice of avocado on the top of the stack–especially if you’re eating it for a full meal.

***The longer this sits, the more the oil and vinegar will flavor the tomatoes. However, if it sits too long it will also wilt. You have to find the balance if you’re planning on letting it sit to infuse the flavors.

Reader Interactions

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Footer