100-Mile Caprese Salad
Friday, August 8th, 2008
The “100 Mile” menu is supposed to be centered around locally produced ingredients. In my area of the country, the Mid-Atlantic, spring through fall offer plenty of opportunities to take advantage of local farmers’ products.
Here’s an easy one – almost every community has a local or regional dairy, and farmers’ markets explode with fresh herbs and summer vegetables. The Caprese Salad of tomato, mozzarella cheese, and basil with a vinaigrette dressing is a fantastic starter for a meal or side dish for a picnic. If your farmers’ market has someone who’s selling a boutique buffalo mozzarella, grab it!
More refined versions of this dish call for olive oil only, and layers of sliced Roma tomato, cheese, and whole basil leaves. This more rustic version is heartier and packs a bigger flavor wallop. This salad is vegetarian, but not vegan.
Ingredients:
1 lb. assorted cherry tomatoes (red, orange, yellow, purple varieties)
8 oz. fresh mozzarella cheese (part skim)
10-12 leaves fresh basil
2 tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
salt
pepper

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