So, if you're running short of time and need a salad, this fix is for you! This recipe--if you can call it a recipe--is incredibly quick and low effort. People also love it. It's good, looks fresh and bright on plates, and doesn't require a lot of weird or hard-to-find ingredients. Yes, really, really good tomatoes would be nice. Unfortunately, sometimes those aren't available. I use what I have, and no one has complained so far. The fresh spicy-sweet basil and creamy fresh mozzarella dress up even plain tomatoes. You can use plain mozzarella or use the kind packed in oil and Italian herbs, if you want a fancier version. A drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar add even more taste and make the salads easy to put together. Enjoy!
Tomato, Basil, and Mozzarella Salads -- Serves 2
Two large tomatoes
Handful of fresh basil leaves
4 slices of fresh mozzarella
2 tablespoons of olive oil
2 tablespoons of balsamic vinegar
Salt and pepper to taste
2 handfuls of arugula or salad greens
Core the tomatoes and cut them into five slices, stopping about three-quarters of the way down and NOT CUTTING ALL THE WAY THROUGH THE TOMATOES. Cut the mozzarella pieces in half and place pieces in between the cut tomato slices. Place basil leaves into the crevices with the mozzarella pieces. Put salad greens on each plate and place the filled tomatoes on top of the salad greens. Drizzle each tomato with half of the olive oil and balasamic vinegar. Sprinkle on salt and pepper to taste. If you have extra basil leaves (you probably will), decorate the tops of the tomatoes and then scatter the leaves on top of the salad greens. Serve the salads at room temperature.
