Caprese Salad to go . . .

To me, the flavors and colors of Salad Caprese are the essence of  summer  ~ Vine ripened tomatoes, fresh Mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, red wine vinegar, good olive oil and salt and freshly ground black pepper.
Usually it is neatly arranged either stacked, or in fanned layers of sliced tomatoes and slices of Mozzarella, then drizzled with dressing and showered with chopped basil leaves.
It's a beautiful presentation when served that way,  but a little fussy to serve on a picnic or on the buffet table. I've made it served on skewers, but that is a little time consuming especially if you have to make many of them.




This version has all of the glorious flavors, and is easy to serve on the buffet table plus it travels well.
Just halve the little tomatoes, cut the Mozzarella into cubes, or buy the little "pearl" size as I did. Add some minced parsley, the red wine vinegar and olive oil and salt and pepper to taste.
This time I added some capers in brine (drained). Sliced scallions, chives or slivers of sweet red onion are also a good addition.
I pluck the smallest basil leaves and add them just before serving in order to retain their bright color and flavor.





It's best served at room temperature to enjoy the full goodness of all the flavors.

~*~*~*~*~ Additional ways to enjoy it: Bobby Flay does a very similar version which he serves as a rough 'relish' with grilled Italian sausages on rolls.  I probably would cut the tomatoes and cheese into smaller pieces in that case, for easier eating, but I'm sure these flavors would taste delicious on grilled sausage or chicken.
If you give it a try, I hope you love it.


Thank you for coming by today!
Cheers ~ mari xo