Market Recipes: Caprese Salad Bites

The Statehouse Market has a fabulous selection of healthy produce to help you make delicious dishes for you and your family. With the Market’s debut of Tulip Tree Creamery this week, what better way to introduce you to this new vendor than with a healthy and simple appetizer for your home using their Fresh Mozzarella.

The Caprese Salad is a refreshing, classic Italian dish using basil, tomato, and mozzarella cheese. Rather than making a salad that you would eat with a fork, we are going to make it smaller and bite-size so it’s perfect when you are entertaining guests or just to enjoy with your family. This healthy snack is delicious and most of the ingredients can be found right at the Statehouse Market every Thursday.

Ingredients

• Tomatoes: available at many of our Produce vendors
• Leaf Basil: from VanAntwerp’s Basil Plants
• Mozzarella Cheese: from Tulip Tree Creamery
• Balsamic Reduction
• Crostini
  • or
• other toasted bread topped with a bit of herbs and olive oil

Directions

To begin, make a choice of whether you want to make your own bread or use a crostini. If you want to make the bread yourself, cut small slices of bread, brush on a light layer of olive oil, and dash with a small bit of herbs, salt, and pepper. Bake these little slices in an oven or toaster oven at 350º for 10-20 minutes until they begin to turn brown and crisp up. If you have chosen crostinis from your supermarket, you have saved yourself this time and it’s an even quicker snack.

Next, you want to slice your tomato into small slices or sliced into tiny bite size bits. This is going to vary from tomato to tomato, but you should stick to your smaller tomatoes that you can eat in one bite. We used baby tomatoes cut in half, but any tomato will do as long as it’s not too big.

After you have prepped your tomatoes, cut your leaf basil into a nice bite size strip. Nothing too big or it will overpower your dish; we found that basic inch size pieces work well. Next you want to slice your mozzarella cheese at about a quarter inch thickness. Slicing your cheese can be difficult because it is so soft, so be careful of your fingers but don’t worry if you cut it uneven or too much. After slicing the cheese, cut up the cheese into smaller bite size peaces that will fit on top of your bread.

The next stage is assembling your tasty Caprese Bite. Layer the mozzarella slices on top of the crostini. Next, layer your slices of basil on top of the cheese. Then top the bite with your sliced tomato. After your Caprese Bite has been assembled, drizzle each with a little balsamic reduction. Make note that balsamic reduction is different than your standard balsamic salad dressing or balsamic vinegar, but it can be easily found near the oils in your local supermarket.

Now enjoy your tasty, refreshing summer snack. It’s best to eat right away before toast softens from the toppings. Enjoy!