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Home | Make a Caprese Salad with Your Fresh Summer Tomatoes

Make a Caprese Salad with Your Fresh Summer Tomatoes

caprese salad

One of the things I love the most about late summer is the abundance of amazing, fresh, organic heirloom tomatoes, whether we grow them in our back yard or get them at the farmer's market or a farm store like Green String Farm in Petaluma. One of our favorite ways to showcase tomatoes is by making a classic Italian-inspired Caprese salad, or insalata caprese. It's simple but so delicious. Make sure you use the freshest, highest quality tomatoes you can find for this. This recipe serves four as a starter. Scale it up to serve more!

Ingredients

  • 2–3 large heirloom tomatoes, sliced
  • 8 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese, sliced
  • A handful of fresh basil leaves
  • Kosher or sea salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • Good quality extra virgin olive oil

Directions

Arrange the tomatoes and cheese in overlapping slices on a large plate or platter. You can tear up the basil leaves and scatter them over the tomatoes and cheese or you can insert a leaf in between the slices.

Sprinkle with salt and freshly ground black pepper, then drizzle with olive oil. Some restaurants add balsamic vinegar to the mix, but if you have great tomatoes you don't need it.