While you may think a caprese salad, or tomato mozzarella salad, is exclusive to Italy, it’s actually not. The French love a salade de tomatoes à la mozzarella and enjoy it often once summer starts.
Tomato Mozzarella Salad
After stumbling upon some gorgeous tomatoes at my local farmer’s market, I’ve found myself enjoying this salad more than once this past week.
Most of us might not think of mozzarella cheese as a healthy option, therefore, this may not be your first choice when you’re trying to eat light and healthy. But if you look at cheese like the French do, this is actually a fantastic salad to whip up.
Fromage, as the French know cheese, is actually one of those foods that, in balanced portions, can really curve your appetite and leave you feeling satiated. It’s why this tomato mozzarella salad is not really looked at by the French as an indulgence.
I love this salad because its delicious, fresh, quick, easy, and is far healthier than most salad options with heavy dressings.
Basilic
And remember how I told you that I love basil here and here? Well, it should be no surprise then that this tomato mozzarella salad is extra fabulous in my book because of the basilic, or basil, that is added.
I’ve surprisingly managed to keep my basil plant alive, and I’ve loved adding some of its leaves to this salad. There’s nothing like the aroma of fresh basil to completely intoxicate you.
In addition to basil, I add a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar to the salad. If you’re using balsamic vinegar, you’ll want to use a thick and syrup-y kind like this one.
The olive oil is just as important, so you’ll always want to use one that’s extra virgin and has great flavor.
To Serve
While mozzarella is generally refrigerated until it’s ready to use, you shouldn’t do the same for tomatoes. A lot of people make the mistake of refrigerating their tomatoes, but tomatoes lose flavor as they sit in the fridge. Instead, keep the tomatoes room temperature.
I like to take out the fresh mozzarella from the fridge and layer it with the room temperature tomatoes about 10 minutes before I’m serving it. This way, the cheese also warms up a bit so that it’s not super cold from the fridge.
Before serving, I drizzle the oil, balsamic, and top with basil. A quick grind of sea salt and pepper is the finishing touch before I dig in!
Tomato Mozzarella Salad
Tomato slices are layered with fresh mozzarella slices and fragrant basil in this summer salad.
Ingredients
- 8 oz fresh mozzarella (226 grams) cut into 8 slices
- 1.5 heirloom tomatoes cut for a total of 8 thick slices
- fresh basil to garnish
- olive oil (about 1 U.S. tbsp) to drizzle on top
- balsamic vinegar (about 1 U.S. tbsp) to drizzle on top
- sea salt
- freshly ground pepper
Instructions
-
Layer the mozzarella slices with tomato slices, alternating between the two. Allow the salad to rest at room temperature for about 10 minutes before serving.
-
Drizzle olive oil all over the cheese and tomatoes. Follow with an equal drizzle of balsamic vinegar. Add a fresh grind of sea salt and pepper to the salad before garnishing with basil leaves.
Carmen says
I love this salad, I added mince garlic an eat it in a French roll
Beeta @ Mon Petit Four says
Yum that sounds delicious, Carmen! 🙂
Douglas P says
Your posting serves as a good reminder to begin cutting my basil plant. Lately I have had to pinch off the flowers to keep it from going to seed.
Beeta @ Mon Petit Four says
I know, I forget too, Douglas!