Caprese Salad: A Simple Classic  

     
Caprese salad is one of the simplest salads you can make but funnily enough, it’s easy to get it wrong.  Why? Because the quality of the ingredients you use is so important.  Buy the best extra virgin olive oil you can, try to use fresh buffalo mozzarella (you should find it in an Italian deli) and don’t even bother to make it in the winter.   Serve it when tomatoes are ripe, juicy and at the height of their season.  Once you have the ingredients right, you hardly need a recipe. Those ingredients will do all the work.  These quantities are enough for four people.

Ingredients:
2 balls of fresh buffalo mozzarella (about 150g or 5oz each)
4 large ripe tomatoes
1 bunch of fresh basil*
Extra virgin olive oil
Salt and pepper

Method:
1. Slice the mozzarella and tomatoes and arrange in alternate overlapping rows on a large plate (or four individual plates).

2. Scatter over some basil leaves, season with salt and pepper and drizzle generously with olive oil.

3. Serve with fresh crusty bread.


In Sicily, I have often eaten a version of caprese salad with fresh oregano sprinkled over instead of basil.  It's a great alternative.  The colour isn't quite as good but the taste is really wonderful.    

 

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