Insalata Caprese

I went to our local farmer's market this Saturday since it was such a gorgeous day. I was looking for some tomatoes to make this salad since the ones from the grocery store are never quite right. I found some beautiful beef steak and yellow tomatoes. Typically, this salad is made with plum tomatoes but I wanted to use local produce and these were to good-looking not to buy!

Again, no recipe for this salad but it's very simple to make.

Ingredients & Preparation:
This made enough for 4 people and we had the leftovers at another meal.

• 1 large beef steak tomato, sliced
• 3 small yellow tomatoes, sliced
• fresh mozzarella (Buffalo mozzarella if you can get it), sliced
• fresh basil, chopped
• radicchio, chopped for decoration
• salt & pepper to taste
• fruity olive oil, drizzle

Cut up your tomatoes into slices. The larger tomato slices may need to be cut in half. Cut mozzarella into slices. Arrange the tomatoes and cheese in rows on a nice platter. Sprinkle with basil, salt & pepper. Place radicchio around the edges for decoration (optional and not the traditional way to serve). Drizzle the salad all over with olive oil when ready to eat. I prefer this salad to be prepared and put in the fridge for an hour or so so it can be served cold.

If you are looking for another way to present this salad, a fancier way to serve individual portions is to make a "stacked" version. Stack your tomatoes, mozzarella and basil (full leaves) and drizzle with olive oil. You can also drizzle some balsamic for added je ne sais quoi.

Buon appetito!