A deliciously easy salad made with summer tomatoes, soft mozzarella cheese and fresh pesto.
Chef's notes
(1) Mozzarella - use fior di latte, bocconcini or buffalo mozzarella.
(2) Balsamic Reduction - can be made in advance and kept in the refrigerator for weeks. Great drizzled over chicken, salads, roasted vegetables and antipasto.
(3) Tomatoes - look for green or yellow heirloom varieties in season.
This recipe is from "Dish", Trish Magwood's most recent cookbook.
Steps
1
Making the Pesto
Ingredients
1 cup (250 ml) loosely-packed, fresh basil
2 cloves garlic
zest and juice of 1 lemon
1/2 cup (125 ml) extra-virgin olive oil
sea salt (to taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
To make the pesto, put the basil, garlic, and lemon zest, along with the juice, in a food processor; pulse to combine.
Add oil and pulse to combine. Season with salt and pepper. Scrape down sides of bowl and pulse once more. Transfer pesto to a bowl and set aside.
2
Marinating the Mozzarella
Ingredients
6 balls soft mozzarella cheese
Slice the mozzarella into 1/2" -inch (about 1 cm) thick rounds.(1)
Place the slices into the pesto and gently mix to coat the cheese.
3
Making the Balsamic Reduction
Ingredients
1 cup (250 ml) balsamic vinegar
In a small saucepan over medium heat, simmer balsamic vinegar until syrupy and reduced to 1/4 cup, about 15 to 20 minutes.(2)
Let cool.
4
Assembling the Salad
Ingredients
1/4 cup (50 ml) pine nuts
6 ripe, but firm tomatoes
Maldon sea salt (to taste)
freshly ground black pepper (to taste)
Toast pine nuts in a fry pan over medium heat until lightly golden, about 2 to 4 minutes.
Slice tomatoes into 1/4-inch slices.(3)
Make 6 to 8 stacks by topping tomato slices with a slice of mozzarella; top with a bit of pesto and season with a pinch of Maldon sea salt and pepper.
Repeat, using about 3 slices of tomato and cheese for each stack.
Place a stack in the centre of each plate. Drizzle the plate with any leftover pesto and some balsamic reduction. Sprinkle pine nuts around each plate.
10 Comments
Laurie B•
I made this for our dinner this evening with fresh tomatoes, basil and mozzarella that I purchased at the Baltimore Farmers Market in Maryland yesterday. It's spectacular - the pesto and the balsamic reduction push it right over the edge. Definitely will be doing this again this summer!
Laurie
Delicious and so so easy, and the kids love it which is a plus.
I make it every time we have a barbecue. Thank you guys!
Unrelated, in step 4, the sentence that begins with 'Repeat' has a typo. The word 'fro' I believe should be 'from' (unless we're for some reason discussing 70's hairstyles...). Shame on you!:)
In all seriousness, thank you for the recipe!
Fantastic and simple. Used this to impress my girlfriend on a date night along with a more elaborate main that I was making for the first time. I had quite a bit of leftover pesto and I was wondering: how long can I keep it in the refrigerator before I use it?
Hello, Sergio: I am going to recommend freezing the pesto. Fill the wells of an ice cube tray with the pesto, once they are frozen, about two hours, pop them out and store in an air-tight container. The can last 4-6 months. If you do not freeze it, max in the fridge is five days. Glad you had a delicious dinner. Cheers, Char
Hello, Riaz: Of course it depends on the actual size of the mozzarella ball, as they can vary in size. But, for all practical purposes--a ball will weigh about 125 grams. Hope this is helpful to you. Cheers, Char
