It’s the LAST WEEK of Summer Fest! Where did all the time go? We’re onto our final round of celebrating the garden and onto Tomatoes. If you haven’t yet heard about Summer Fest, it’s a four-week celebration of fresh-from-the-garden food: recipes, growing tips, even tricks for storing and preserving summer’s best with my co-hosts White on Rice, Away to Garden, Simmer Till Done, Paige of The Sister Project and Matt Bites. Of course, It’s not a party without your participation! And I’ll tell you how in just a bit.
When we first threw the idea of Summer Fest around, I was just ending my early Summer season of tomatoes. It’s just way too hot here where I live in Florida to grow much of anything in the thick of summer. I SHOULD be starting my tomatoes for our Fall/Winter-ish season (there’s no such thing as Winter here, it’s still like 80F in December) but I haven’t started, because this is what happens to my tomato garden when I travel too much:
Um yeah. So my Earthboxes are still empty.
Wait…you don’t believe me that I can harvest tomatoes in the winter? Oh let me show you what I picked on Christmas Eve in 2007:
Okay, so it was only 1 itty bitty leeeetle tomato. But still! Christmas Eve harvest!
But there are SOME things that are growing:
So I’ve got basil…LOTS of basil and had to cheat with the tomato and get that at a farmer’s market to make Caprese Salad with Basil Vinaigrette.
When tomato is THIS good, I hate to do anything other than enjoy it fresh in a salad. My Basil Vinaigrette is simple to make, takes 5 minutes in a blender. You’ll love it. I promise.
First, the Basil Vinaigrette ingredients: fresh basil leaves, shallots, sea salt, a couple slices of fresh chili pepper, good olive oil and a white vinegar (I’m in love with Dehydr8).
First you gotta chop up the shallots and the pepper in the blender.
Next goes in the torn basil leaves, salt, vinegar and 2 tablespoons of water. You need that liquid to get things moving in the blender.
Let that baby whirl while you slowly drizzle in the olive oil. Look at that gorgeous mossy green!
Once it calms down a bit, the color turns bright vivid green.
The makings of a Caprese Salad.
Wait. Another beauty shot of the tomato.
Since I’m stacking this Caprese Salad up, I want to make sure that the bottom layer (which uses the bottom of the tomato) is flat — so that the whole stack doesn’t fall over. So lop off the round butt of the tomato so that it has a flat ass to sit on.
Start stacking and layering your Caprese Salad!
Lastly…drizzle the Basil Vinaigrette over your Caprese Salad.
Love that drizzle action!
PrintCaprese Salad with Basil Vinaigrette Recipe
serves 4 as first course
4 large tomatoes, sliced into thick slices
1 pound fresh mozzarella, sliced into thick slices
1/2 cup loosely packed basil leaves
sea salt & freshly ground black pepper
For the Basil Vinaigrette
1 small shallot, roughly chopped
2 slices fresh chili pepper
1 cup loosely packed basil leaves, torn
2 tablespoons water
2 tablespoons good white wine vinegar
1 teaspoon kosher or sea salt (1/2 tsp table salt)
6 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil
1. To make the Basil Vinaigrette, add the shallot and chili pepper to the blender. Next add the basil leaves, water, vinegar and sea salt. Blend. Slowly drizzle in the olive oil as you are blending.
2. To assemble the Caprese Salad, layer the tomato, fresh mozzarella and basil leaves. In between each layer, season with a bit of sea salt and freshly ground black pepper. Drizzle the basil vinaigrette on top.
Store extra basil vinaigrette in the refrigerator for up to 2 weeks.
How you can join Summer Fest
Summer Fest 2009 is a four-week, cross-blog celebration co-created (alphabetically listed) by A Way to Garden, Matt Armendariz of Mattbites, Jaden Hair of Steamy Kitchen, and Todd and Diane of White on Rice Couple, with guest appearances from Shauna and Daniel Ahern of Gluten-Free Girl, Simmer Till Done’s Marilyn Pollack Naron, and Paige Smith Orloff of The Sister Project.’ And from you that’s critical. Your contributions are desired, and needed.
Will you play along? Have a recipe or tip that fits any of our weekly themes? Starting today, with the subject of herbs, you can contribute in various ways, big or small. Contribute a whole post, or a comment, whatever you wish. It’s meant to be fun, viral, fluid. No pressure, just delicious. The possibilities:
Simply leave your tip or recipe or favorite links in the comments below a Summer Fest post on my blog, and then go visit my collaborators and do the same.
The cross-blog event idea works best when you leave your recipe or favorite links (whether to your own blog or someone else’s) at all the host blogs. That way, they are likely to be seen by the widest audience. Everyone benefits, and some pretty great dialog starts simmering.
Or think bigger: Publish entire entire posts of your own, if you wish, and grab the juicy Summer Fest 2009 tomato badge (illustrated by Matt of Mattbites).
Summer Fest 2009 Schedule:
- Tuesday, August 18: TOMATO WEEK. How do you like them love apples? (this week!)
What did my co-hosts make for the Summer Fest Party?
Simmer Till Done Made a Savory Upside Down Tomato Basil Bread
Matt Bites does Tomatoes 10 Ways
Away to Garden shows us her Quick Tomato Sauce Ever So Slowly
White on Rice tells us about their kiddie tomato thieves and makes Tomato Jam!
What a cute little girl! Paige from The Sister Project makes Curried Carrot and Tomato Soup
Gluten Free Girl makes Smoked Tomato Salsa
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I love to make an Heirloom Tomato Salad with Watermelon Sorbet and Pickled Watermelon Rind! The recipe and a photograph can be found here:
http://www.porktopurslane.com/search/label/Heirloom%20Tomato%20Salad%20with%20Watermelon%20Sorbet%20Pickled%20Rind%20and%20Micro-Basil
Caprese again but this time with roasted tomatoes — the hot tomatoes soften the cheese and a little sea salt pops the flavor. That’s on my recent post at http://www.kitchenelly.com/2009/08/roasted-tomato-caprese-served-warm/
This recipe just screams summer! Such vibrant, gorgeous colors. Delicious.
This looks like pure heaven! You’ve managed to bring the caprese salad to a whole new level – YUMMMM!!
As a basil lover, I found your entry for Caprese Salad with Basil Vinaigrette fascinating. I have never tried creating a basil vinaigrette. But now it is on my list of things to accomplish. Many thanks.
I love the pictures especially the drizzle action. I love caprese salads in the summer time
Thank you Janice! That was fun — one hand drizzling, other hand clicking on camera.
That almost makes me want to actually plant some tomatoes on my balcony next year. That way I can be overrun and need to find tasty recipes such as these to make.
These photos are so vibrant and beautiful! I love a good caprese salad and this one looks good enough to grab off the screen! Yumm!
I love all of your pictures as well. The first one is amazing! I couldn’t think of a better way to photograph those tomatoes. This salad looks so fresh, and I can almost taste the vinaigrette dressing–delicious!
-Sylvia
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