I love the combination of olive oil, balsamic vinegar, salt, and pepper. I love the creamy texture and taste of fresh mozzarella. I love the bright flavor of basil. What don’t I like about a Caprese Salad? Sliced tomatoes leaving their tomato slime all over my plate! I do enjoy eating diced tomatoes in a pasta dish, or even on a taco as a pico de gallo. I cannot, however, eat a sliced tomato – there is just too much slime involved. And – I know when one has been accidentally placed on a sandwich I order and then removed!
I decided to try a twist on this salad by replacing the tomatoes with roasted bell peppers. This may not be for everyone, especially those tomato lovers, but I LOVED it! The sweetness of the bell peppers was an excellent pairing with the fresh Mozzarella and basil.
This post was originally from May of 2012, in August 2019, I decided to keep the post but update it a bit. I have changed the recipe slightly and updated the photos.
Give this twist a try – I’d love to hear what you think!
Ingredients
- 4 cups torn Romaine lettuce
- 4 slices (1/4 inch thick) fresh Mozzarella
- 2 bell peppers
- 1 slice of prosciutto, cut into thin strips
- 2 tablespoons chiffonade of basil (about 3-4 leaves) – How to chiffonade? Stack the leaves, roll them tightly (long ways), cut across the leaves creating ribbons of basil!
- Olive oil
- Balsamic vinegar
- Balsamic glaze
- Salt and Pepper, to taste
Instructions
- Start by roasting the bell peppers, this can be done the night before if you are planning ahead.
- Preheat oven to 400 degrees.
- Place the bell peppers on a piece of foil in the oven and roast, turning with tongs occasionally, for about 30 minutes.
- Once they are blackened and the skin is blistered, they are done. Remove them from the oven and place them in a zip top bag for about 15 minutes. This will help “steam” them and the skins will remove more easily.
- Gently remove the stems, skins, the seeds, and drain any excess liquid. You’ll want to try to keep the pepper in large pieces.
- Store in a air tight container in the refrigerator until ready to use.
- Once you are ready to assemble, toss your Romaine in some olive oil and balsamic vinegar, season with salt and pepper to taste.
- Place your dressed lettuce on a large plate.
- Top with roasted peppers and sliced mozzarella (alternating).
- Drizzle the peppers and mozzarella with a little bit more olive oil as well as some balsamic glaze.
- Top with the chiffonade of basil and strips of prosciutto.
- Finish off the mozzarella and peppers with a few grinds from your pepper mill.
- Serve immediately between two plates.
Comments (0)
OMGosh! The jizz!! I agree though.
Exactly!
Heather, what a fantastic idea! This would be perfect for those 10 months of the year when I can't get amazing homegrown tomatoes. LOVE this!
Thanks Liz!!!