caprese salad

There's just something about the clean and delicate taste of this simple caprese salad that appeals to me. I've always ranked it high in my list of salad favorites. We didn't harvest much from our basil plants this year so I just gave up and maybe try again next year. There's just something in the air or some kind of invisible sci-fi bug :-) out there that was constantly chewing on the leaves of our delicate herbs. It was too late to relocate them but next time I will try elevating them. The same bug most probably chewed on our pepper plants but it was a good thing my husband managed to save them from total destruction by moving them to our deck. The absence of basil didn't bother me. The parsley substitution somehow made up for the caprese salad's signature three colors of the Italian flag. We enjoyed it with the olive oil, balsamic vinegar, chopped parsley and garlic dip. There's more info in the Seasonal Gourmet and a recipe for it in What's Cooking America website.

ALMOST CAPRESE SALAD (with parsley instead of basil)
1 ripe and juicy tomato, sliced
fresh mozarella cheese, sliced

Arrange the tomato and mozarella slices alternately on a serving plate. Sprinkle with chopped parsley and garnish with parsley sprigs. For the dip, mix together 1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil, 1 tablespoon (or more) finely chopped fresh garlic, 2-3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar (optional) and 1 tablespoon chopped fresh parsley. Season with salt, pepper and red pepper flakes (if desired) then drizzle on the caprese salad.