Basil + Tomato Recipe for A Great Summer Salad

Basil + Tomato Recipe for A Great Summer Salad

OVER THE CENTURIES, humans have created timeless flavor combinations that go together so well they seem to have been made for each other in culinary heaven—rosemary with lamb, beans and cornbread, garlic with pasta, and lemon with just about anything. One of the most heavenly combos is tomatoes and basil, which reaches its zenith each summer when the tomatoes are fresh, the basils busting out and the desire to labor in a hot kitchen is just about nil. Slice those tomatoes, pluck the basil, add some fresh mozzarella, olive oil and balsamic vinegar and you have yourself a scrumptious insalata CapresCy which is Italian for "What a great salad!" Actually, its Italian for "the salad from Capri," and a quick search through cookbooks and online sources reveals that there is much flexibility in the ingredients. The fresh cheese and herbs make it an excellent salad to help build strong bones. (For more on bone health, see Page 38.) Traditionally, Caprese is made with bufl^alo mozzarella, from the milk of domesticated water buffalo, but here in the states, the mozzarella is more likely to be made from cows' milk. Switch It Up Beyond these basic ingredients, the recipes can get quite inventive. Substitute radicchio for the basil, for instance, or sift a little dried oregano over the salad. Replace the tomatoes with mangoes and give your taste buds a new challenge. When I have leftover roast beef, I slice that thin and alternate it with the mozzarella and sliced tomatoes, which might not be authentic but sure is tasty. The new availability of so many varieties of heirloom tomatoes opens up a whole new palette for those wishing to branch out a bit from the ordinary—if one would ever dare to call this treat ordinary. Our cover recipe mixed cherry tomatoes in with regular red tomatoes.

At home, IVe alternated yellow, red and orange tomatoes, and have added thinly sliced red onion or a scattering of Kalamata olives. If the 'Green Zebra' and yellow 'Taxi' heirlooms I'm growing with such great hope this year actually end up bearing fruit, won't that be a Caprese to behold? —K. C. Compton is editor-inchief of Herb Companion.


Caprese Salad SERVES 4

  2 balls fresh mozzarella cheese (about 8 ounces) 4 medium-size ripe tomatoes 12 red and yellow cherry tomatoes, halvec Salt Freshly ground pepper Olive oi Balsamic vinegar, optiona Fresh basil leaves Sprigs of basil, for garnish Q Remove cheese from brine and cut into 8 slices. Slice each tomato into 3 slices. B Arrange tomato slices, cheese slices and cherry tomatoes on 4 salad plates. El Sprinkle with salt and pepper. Drizzle with olive oil and vinegar, if desired. Top with fresh basil leaves. Garnish with a sprig of basil.

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