One summer afternoon, while I was spending a weekend at my grandparents’ house, my grandma taught me how to make a Caprese salad. We placed alternating spirals of tomatoes, basil leaves and fresh mozzarella cheese on a large assortment, topped with olive oil, salt, pepper and a drizzle of balsamic vinegar. For a light lunch, it was the perfection of summer.
After all, the magical summer combination of basil and tomatoes is well combined with more than just cheese. For dairy-free salads that still satisfy Caprese’s cravings, canned cannellini beans make a big alternative to mozzarella cheese.
When I make this salad, I enjoy it in two ways: I eat a portion of it in a bowl for lunch, then spoon the rest in a crostini and share it with my family on dinnertime. Garlic toast complements the salad very well. It seems they were planning to go with me!
Simply recipes/Coco Morante
Important ingredients
This salad has very few ingredients, so it’s important that all ingredients have the best quality you can get. If you’re growing cherry tomatoes in your garden, you’re lucky! They make this salad even more amazing.
However, if you’re getting produce from a grocery store, Hothouse cherry tomatoes are a great substitute. I like what’s called a flavor bomb, and I have a 12oz clamshell and still have stems. They are the sweetest, most flavorful store-bought cherry tomatoes I’ve found. The big campali tomatoes are also amazing. Simply chop into quarter or eighth. No matter what type of varieties you choose, check the actual tomato-like smell and taste.
It is important to use extra virgin olive oil in this recipe. Its grassy fresh flavor adds much more bliss to your salad than regular olive oil. My favourites are the Organic Kirkland signature varieties from Cobram Estate, California Olive Ranch and Costco.
As for Balsamic Vinegar, I stock up on multiple bottles of my favourite and snatch half a dozen if I’ve seen them in the store. Trader Joe’s Platinum-Aged Balsamic Vinegar only appears during the holiday season. Additionally, the price of “Inbu CCHIATO” vinegar, which has been aged for at least three years, is very reasonably priced. Other comparable vinegar prices are usually much higher. It is viscous, very concentrated, mellow and sweet.
You might think that all canned beans are the same, but you’ll see that Cento’s is the most flavorful. It’s also the best brand of sodium I’ve seen in stores these days. Canned beans with less than 200 mg of sodium per serving tend to be a bit bland, but if you’re looking at salt you’ll get it perfectly.
Finally, sprinkle with optional flake-like salt to make the flavor pop. Choose what you like. For such recipes, there is always a small container of Jacobsen’s pure flake sea salt on the counter. Add some crystals just before chewing. This instantly melts the fun and crispy texture.
Simply recipes/Coco Morante
How to make my 4 iconic white beans and tomato salad
To create 3-4 servings, you need to:
12 oz (approx. 2 1/2 cups) cherry tomatoes, half (15 oz) cannellini beans, drain and rinse, 2 tablespoons fresh basil chopped 1/4 tsp KOSHER SALT 1/4 teaspoon fresh black pepperton and aged for served for crosstini for crosstini virgin vinegar salt, optional
In a large mixing bowl, stir together the tomatoes, beans, basil, olive oil, kosher salt and pepper. Transfer to a dish or spoon that will serve a plate or spoon over toast or crostini. If you use and serve balsamic vinegar in drizzle, sandwich it in a pinch of flake-like salt.
Store the remaining salad in an airtight container in the fridge for up to 2 days. Basil can oxidize slightly and discolor, but it is still safe to eat.
