Thursday, August 8, 2013

Rosie Makes Insalata Caprese.


 
 Today's celebration of the summer tomato 
is a traditional Neapolitan dish,
Insalata Caprese,
a salad in the style of Capri.
It's gloriously simple,
containing only tomatoes,
fresh mozzarella, and basil, 
seasoned with freshly ground salt and pepper
and extra virgin olive oil.

This is often called Insalata Tricolore,
tricolore referring to the three colors
of the Italian flag.
The only requirement is that the ingredients must be perfect.
Please do not use the plastic-wrapped bricks
of rubbery cheese that pass for mozzarella 
in the supermarket.
You want a fresh, moist mozzarella, 
ideally mozzarella di bufula,
which is a specialty of the Naples region,
but a good quality cow's milk cheese will work.
You want sun-ripened tomatoes
and you want basil that's been grown in the sun and the soil.
Hydroponically-grown basil doesn't have the same flavor.
Insalata Caprese
Vine-ripened, red, juicy flavorful tomatoes, peeled and sliced
Fresh mozzarella, sliced into discs the same thickness as the tomatoes
Fragrant, tender, young basil leaves
Kosher salt and freshly ground pepper
Excellent extra virgin olive oil.
Alternate the tomato and mozzarella on a platter, overlapping.
Tear the basil leaves
and sprinkle liberally over the slices.
Add the salt and freshly ground pepper, to taste.

Just before serving,
drizzle the olive oil over top.

 Rosie Tip # 397:
 To thinly slice the mozzarella, I use fishing wire.
It gives you a nice, smooth, clean cut.
Use fishing line to cut any type of soft cheese
to get a neat slice.
You could also use dental floss.

  
 
Whomever first put basil and tomatoes together was genius.

 
Pure Genius.



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