Caprese Salad (or Skewers)

Does anything say summer more than fresh garden tomatoes? Well, besides grilling out, picnics at the beach, water sports, and all of that… But, if you are anything like me, even a little, grilling out doesn’t necessarily indicate summer, as I do that all year ‘round. But, tomatoes are a clear indication of summer. I don’t know about anyone else, but I’ve never seen real, delicious, ripe tomatoes in the middle of winter! (I am seriously of the opinion that someone in my community needs to build a greenhouse to grow fresh produce for all of us during the winter months. It could be like a community co-op kind of thing, where you have to pay so much for the privilege of going there or something, but I think it would definitely be worth it. That’s another story, though…) And how could you not feel in a summery mood with such a beautiful, fresh salad like this? I honestly don’t think it’s possible…
Now, I realize that there are about a million of these “recipes” floating around out there, and about a hundred different ways to arrange them, but these are my little concoctions. I’ve even seen stacked Caprese salads! While visually stunning, it seems to be a waste of time and energy… I mean, you can’t eat a giant stack like that without having to disassemble it and everything before eating it. And I like to enjoy my masterpieces just as they are!! But, the fact of the matter is, pretty much every Caprese salad is the same thing. And that’s just fine with me! These things are so delicious, it doesn’t even matter.
One of my recent favorite ingredients is a balsamic reduction. Yes, you very well CAN make your own reduction, and if you want to I am more than happy for you to do just that. However, these days, I have slightly less time for stuff like that… And there are so many genuinely great products on the market, it seems silly to slave over a hot stove all day when you can have someone else do that for you! The only thing I would highly recommend is that you look for a balsamic reduction that says it’s a product of Italy. Not saying that other people don’t know how to make a good reduction or anything, but it’s a well-known fact that Italians know a thing or two about good balsamic vinegar. The one that I use, and really like, is called Cream of Balsamic and is imported by Isola Imports, which a local gourmet cheese store in my area carries. These guys have a lot of really great products, so I would definitely recommend checking them out, when you have time! (And, no, I am not being paid to say that, nor have I received any other kind of compensation for telling you about them. It’s just a great product and I want to share it with all of you! :-))
As for the basil, that is my favorite herb and I probably overuse it, according to some people’s standards. So, I didn’t give an amount for that, because I want you guys to use as much or as little as you like… The same goes for the pine nuts; use as much or as little as you like. And here’s the thing about pine nuts - they taste TERRIBLE if they’re not fresh! I’m sure other nuts are very much the same, but I can’t remember having any other nuts after they’ve gone rancid. And, for some reason, pine nuts are more susceptible to this than others. If you’ve ever been so unfortunate as to have eaten a rancid pine nut, it will make you dislike them more than just about anything. But, they’re really not so bad if they’re fresh! So, I make it a point to take all nuts and stuff like that from the very back of the shelf… The stockers at the grocery store rotate all of the stuff, so the freshest product is always in the back. With highly perishable stuff (even milk and cheese), I prefer it to be as fresh as possible. Even if people do look at me like I’m some kind of crazy lady for digging all the way to the back of the shelf! :-D

Now, for the skewers, I just bought two containers of tomatoes from the grocery store, one of plain red grape/cherry tomatoes and the other the yellow variety. It never hurts to be colorful! When I bought my mozzarella, I hadn’t had plans for what I was going to do with it (it was on sale), so I bought the container of small ones. For this, if I was planning in advance, I probably would have gotten them a little bit bigger, but it’s more than easy to make do with what you have. And you can arrange them on the skewers however you’d like, and even do more on one skewer, but I thought they looked rather pretty this way. You could cut the basil up and alternate it between layers of mozzarella and tomatoes, though… Or you could decide to only do one tomato and one mozzarella per skewer… Whatever you would like to do with your skewers will be more than okay. Be creative! :-)

Printable Recipe

2 large red (or heirloom) tomatoes
2 heirloom tomatoes
16 oz. fresh mozzarella
Extra Virgin Olive Oil
Balsamic Reduction Sauce
Fresh basil, chiffonaded
Pine Nuts
Salt and pepper

Slice the tomatoes approximately ½-inch thick and set aside; slice the fresh mozzarella to the same thickness and set aside. To arrange the Caprese salad, place one of each of the tomato slices together and arrange however you wish, followed by one slice of mozzarella. Continue arranging the tomatoes and mozzarella until you have no more left or run out of room on the plate. Drizzle a little bit of olive oil over the tomatoes and mozzarella, followed by a fair amount of the balsamic reduction. Sprinkle some fresh basil and pine nuts over the top of the salad, followed by the salt and pepper just before serving.

Heirloom Tomato Pie

This recipe is definitely not one of my own creations, as I’m sure many of you probably already know, if you’re an avid foodie like me and are captivated by anything food related. It’s like those people who are attracted to shiny things! Food is my shiny thing. :-)
The recipe for this lovely little “pie” comes straight from the glossy pages of Food Network magazine. There was a picture of this on the cover of the most recent edition, and I swear it was taunting me as I was trying to grocery shop. Every time I would go down an aisle and pass it in the checkout stands, I stopped and drooled for a few seconds! The picture on the cover is the only reason I even bought the stinkin’ magazine!! But, I’m glad I did, because there are some really good recipes in there.
Since the farmer’s markets have been back, I’ve been frequenting them often in hopes of finding some beautiful heirloom tomatoes specifically for this pie. Well, on Wednesday, I was a lucky girl indeed! Not only did I manage to find enough little beauties for this pie, but we enjoyed some in salads that night too! However, because of the amount of work required to make this, I didn’t get around to it until last night. And, we had guests from out of town, so it turned out to be the perfect opportunity… I had some more guinea pigs! ;-)
I will have you all know, there was not even a single crumb of this stuff left in the pie plate by the end of the meal. I had promised one of my coworkers that I would bring him some the next time I worked, but that’s not gonna happen now! Next time… Of course, you all know me, so I didn’t follow the recipe exactly. Because I worked in the morning, I opted to use an already prepared pie crust to save on time. (Honestly, I hate rolling out pie crust anyways, so it wasn’t a hard decision for me. Pillsbury is pretty darn good at making pie crusts that taste a lot like homemade, and it’s less frustrating for me, so I go with that instead…) I also did some research, and found that Manchego cheese is ridiculously expensive, so opted for a similar substitute which I really love, Parmesan. And, because this is Wisconsin, you KNOW I didn’t stick with their measurements for cheese! Lol
Actually, at work last week, I was given the opportunity to try a new cheese, Morel Mushroom and Leek Jack, which was really good. So, imagine my surprise and delight when I found it at my local market! I had been telling my mama and sister about it for a few days (and a couple of my friends, too), so decided to pick some up. I cut up some for everyone to sample, and then grated some to mix in with the other cheeses. It was sooooooo good! The heat from the oven helped bring out some of the mushroom and leek flavors, which really complimented the rest of the dish. Of course, if you can’t find it or don’t like mushrooms or leeks (onions), don’t worry about it. Use whatever you like best or something you want to experiment with! And, if you’d like, you can find the original recipe, complete with a crust recipe, on the Food Network website.

Printable Recipe

2 prepared 9-inch pie crusts, unbaked
¾ c. plus 3 Tbsp. shredded Parmesan cheese
2 Tbsp. extra-virgin olive oil
1 large onion, thinly sliced
2¼ lb. mixed heirloom tomatoes
Sea salt
¼ c. shredded mozzarella cheese
1 c. shredded Monterey Jack cheese
¼ c. mayonnaise
3 Tbsp. breadcrumbs
3 Tbsp. chopped fresh chives
3 Tbsp. minced fresh parsley
½ tsp. dried thyme
Freshly ground pepper

For the crust: Place one prepared crust, rolled out into a circle, on your work surface, top with the 3 tablespoons of freshly shredded Parmesan cheese, and place the second crust on top of the cheese; roll the crusts out together into a 13-inch round. Transfer the dough to a 9½-inch deep-dish pie plate. Fold the overhang under itself and crimp the edges; pierce the bottom of the crust all over with a fork and refrigerate until firm, about 20 minutes. Meanwhile, preheat the oven to 350°.
Line the crust with foil, then fill with dried beans. Bake until the edges are golden, about 20 minutes. Remove the foil and beans and continue baking until golden all over, 10 to 15 more minutes. Transfer to a rack to cool.
Make the filling: Heat 1 tablespoon olive oil in a large skillet over medium heat. Add the onion and cook, stirring, until they are caramelized, about 25 minutes. Let cool. Meanwhile, thinly slice the tomatoes; sprinkle with 1 teaspoon of sea salt in a colander. Let the tomatoes drain, gently turning occasionally, about 30 minutes. Place the tomatoes on a clean kitchen towel or paper towels to dry off some of the liquid.
Increase the oven temperature to 375°. Combine the remaining 3/4 cup Parmesan, the mozzarella, Monterey Jack, mayonnaise, breadcrumbs, 2 tablespoons each chives and parsley, the thyme, ¼ teaspoon each kosher salt and pepper, and the sautéed onion in a bowl; spread in the crust. Arrange the tomatoes on top of the cheese mixture and drizzle with the remaining 1 tablespoon olive oil and season with pepper. Cover the edges of the pie crust with foil or pie crust shields and bake until the tomatoes are browned, about 50 minutes. Top with the remaining 1 tablespoon each chives and parsley.