Today I thought I’d share a quick tip on how to switch up your every day salad. If you or your family tend to have a salad with dinner, or even lunch, they can often become pretty redundant and mundane and it’s always nice to have another type of go-to salad.
OK. Fiiiine. I know that I shouldn’t be the expert on salads. Mainly considering the fact that I don’t eat them. (That whole “I don’t eat any fruits or vegetables” thing gets in the way of this.) Howeverrrr, I make them often because my husband has a salad every. single. day. I swear, that man could survive on salads alone. I think he feels about salad how I feel about pizza. It can be added to every meal, a late night snack, the only thing that sounds good when you’re sick, or even a hangover remedy. See, my pizza=his salad.
Because of the need for a little variety in this household, sometimes I’ll throw together a little Caprese salad for the Mr. My mother-in-law has fresh basil growing like a small forest preserve in her backyard and was kind enough to give me a ton of it so all about that bass(il). Get it?? (yes, I intentionally just misspelled basil to use a relevant song pun. But you’re the one still reading this 😉 )
It’s so easy! Here are the ingredients:
- Fresh Basil
- Tomatos (little grape tomatoes work well)
- Fresh mozzarella (little pearls are great)
- Olive Oil
- Salt and Pepper
- Optional: Balsamic Vinegar (to top)
I made the Caprese salad two ways this particular night — one on skewers and one in a traditional salad bowl. Skewers are always a great option to trick kids into trying different foods — cuz everything is cuter on a stick!
Take the mozzarella and dry it out on a paper towel (so it doesn’t get gummy or mushy). Rinse the tomatoes…then take the basil and stack the pieces of it on top of one another. Roll it up into a little ball and then cut into strips. This creates a chiffonade and makes a really pretty presentation. (See pics below). Alternate the mozzarella and tomatoes on a skewer then drizzle with olive oil. Sprinkle with the chiffonades of basil and season with salt and pepper. (Or just throw it all into a bowl, like the other picture). For a nice finishing touch, add a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. And voila!
Happy salad-ing. 😉
-T
