Caprese Salad with Balsamic Reduction

Mmmmmmmmmm.......

This recipe puts together 4 of my favorite foods of all time.

Vine ripened tomatoes.

Delicious fresh mozzarella cheese.

Pungent basil leaves.

Balsamic reduction.

Oh my.

I made this version with cherry tomatoes, so I decided to cut the mozzarella into bite-sized pieces and toss everything together in a bowl. Delicious and everything is distributed evenly.

But...

You can also use larger tomatoes, and layer tomato slices with slices of mozzarella and leaves of basil, and then drizzle the balsamic reduction over the top. This makes for a prettier presentation, since the cheese likes to soak up the balsamic and turn a little brown.

See?

Either way, this is wonderful and super easy.

I could just eat the balsamic reduction by the spoonful.

Here is the recipe:

Caprese Salad with Balsamic Reduction (serves 8 as an appetizer)

• 2 lbs ripe cherry tomatoes, cut in half
• 1 lb fresh mozzarella cheese, cubed
• 1/4 cup of basil, chiffonaded
• 1 cup of balsamic vinegar

For balsamic reduction:
Put vinegar in a small saucepan over medium heat, simmer until reduced by about half. The mixture will continue to thicken as it cools...if it gets too thick, stir in a tablespoon of warm water.

Combine tomatoes, cheese and basil in a bowl. Pour cooled balsamic reduction over and toss to combine. Enjoy!

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