Turtle Box Blog

Summer salad: Caprese

Now that summer is here, its time to start enjoying all those delicious summer salads you've seen on Pinterest. The key to a great salad (or any dish, really) is the ingredients - the freshest ingredients will make the yummiest meals. A caprese salad makes use of all the best veggies with tomato, onion, basil, avocado, mozzarella and balsamic (seriously, we could eat this everyday). Depending on how many you are serving you will need to adjust the amount you are using of each ingredient. 

I choose heirloom tomatoes for their rich flavor. While many wouldn't call them "pretty," I think these actually have quite a bit more taste than some of their counterparts. Look for tomatoes that are firm, but remember not to store them in the refrigerator (refrigerated tomatoes become mealy and lose some of their taste).  

Ingredients:

• Tomato
• Mozzarella
• Avocado
• Fresh Basil
• Red Onion
• Balsamic Reduction
• Salt and Pepper

Directions:

Each ingredient needs to be sliced, and then arranged on the plate. I sometimes change up how I arrange the plate. If I'm slicing the mozzarella, I will usually place the tomatoes and mozzarella around the plate, alternating before adding the onions and avocado. Chop basil and add to the top of the dish, but don't forget to add a few leaves of basil on top as a garnish!