Last month my husband and I spent a weekend on Orcas Island to celebrate our anniversary. While there, we had a wonderful meal at the New Leaf Cafe. A highlight of our meal was an heirloom tomato caprese salad, which was a special that night.
When we returned from our trip, my husband requested that I make a caprese salad using our garden tomatoes. They were at their peak of ripeness, and perfect for this dish. Rather than follow a recipe, I decided to just wing it. I supplemented our garden tomatoes with a purchased yellow heirloom tomato (I tasted one first, to make sure it was worthy of sharing a plate with our garden tomatoes). We ate this as a main dish salad, served with bread to sop up the leftover juices.
Note: This recipe requires the best ingredients you can find. Use peak-of-season tomatoes, from your garden or farmer’s market. This is also the time to use your best olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Sea salt really brings out the flavor of the tomatoes.
This recipe does not contain precise amounts – use it as a guideline to make your salad.
Karen’s Caprese Salad
- A variety of peak-of-season tomatoes, sliced
- Fresh mozzarella, sliced
- Fresh basil leaves, sliced into julienne strips
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Sea salt
- Pepper
Arrange the tomato and fresh mozzarella slices attractively on salad plates. Sprinkle with the julienned basil leaves. Drizzle with olive oil and balsamic vinegar. Add sea salt and pepper to taste. Enjoy!
From Scratch 