Recipe Box - Baked Caprese Salad

My husband's favorite homemade dish is, without a doubt, Baked Caprese Salad. He can eat a whole tray of it by himself in one sitting. But honestly, it can be expensive, especially when we don't have our own fresh tomatoes and basil growing in the garden and when I can't make the bread. For that reason, the dish is usually reserved for special occasions, such as his birthday last week.

Now don't let the name fool you - there's no lettuce in this salad. The recipe is simply based on the well-known Italian dish Caprese Salad which is a blend of tomatoes, mozzarella, and basil. I use Giada de Laurentiis's original recipe with a few modifications. I won't go through the whole recipe since it's a click away, but here are my changes.

While the recipe calls for a baguette, I use a loaf of whole wheat French bread. We love whole wheat, and we try to avoid white flour whenever possible. Instead of Roma tomatoes, we use Campari tomatoes. Campari are smaller and more flavorful. I have found that sometimes Romas can be a bit bland, especially when they are off season. Campari usually taste sweet and juicy. My last modification is to use marinated mozzarella. Marinated mozzarella is usually preserved in a bowl of oil/vinegar with spices. The cheese has a little burst of flavor and is more exciting than plain mozzarella.

Prairie Dad LOVED having this for his birthday, and I loved that it was easy to make. My final tip to choose good olive oil - good olive oil will make your bread golden and delicious, and you will enjoy every mouthwatering bite.