Easy Fourth of July Sides: Caprese Salad Basics

The Fourth of July is next week, my friend. Next. Week. The summer that felt like it would never arrive is finally here and in full force. My tomato plants are thriving in the 80+ degree sunny days and warm nights we've gotten this week. They all got haircuts today to get that good airflow going, and they got their fourth round of ties, too!

This was my second year of starting my own tomatoes from seed. Last year, I had a horrible time deciding which seedlings to thin and instead kept and repotted them all, so I wound up with somewhere around 18 tomato plants. I was better about being heartless this year, and had only 10 coming up on transplanting time.

Well, then a funny thing happened...

I discovered Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds and had visions of a beautiful cutting flower garden. A hefty order of zinnias, balsam, and snapdragons later, I realized they included free mystery seeds with each order.

Don't you know they happened to be Purple Russian tomatoes?

Of course I had to try those too, so I popped a few seeds in a starter pot, which turned into two starts (I know, I'm supposed to be heartless but I just couldn't), so if you're counting, we're up to 12.

And then...

Have you ever heard of tomato suckers? They're the shoots that grow at a 45˚ angle from the "armpits" of the plant between the main stem and the arms. I single stake my plants, so these suckers get pruned. Well, those suckers grow fast, and if you're not paying attention or if you miss a few days of garden checks due to rain or whatever, those suckers may grow out of control. Don't worry, you can absolutely still prune them even if they get huge. And the best news? Stick them in a glass of water and they'll grow roots, then you can plant them! And I did just that. Twice.

14...

But don't worry, I'm absolutely done. I'm out of space. Well, until I pull my carrots... NO. STOP.

All that to say, caprese salad is my go-to quick and easy side dish that EVERYONE loves. It's the ultimate picnic side, full of juicy tomatoes that taste like pure summer. It takes no time at all to make (in fact, it's best if you wait to make it until right before it's served, because you are NOT allowed to refrigerate tomatoes), and you only need three main ingredients: tomato, mozzarella, and basil.

Let your creativity run wild with caprese salad. You can really use any type of tomato you like, any type of mozzarella, and any type of basil. And yes, there are many variations of each.

Try using different colors of grape or cherry tomatoes with mozzarella pearls and chiffonade basil, or alternate slices of heirloom tomatoes with buffalo mozzarella slices and whole basil leaves. Get artistic and combine multiple varieties of each, and finish with drizzles of balsamic glaze and flavorful extra virgin olive oil, and of course salt and freshly cracked black pepper.

I feel silly to even include a true recipe here, so I'll just include these guidelines:

• Pick the highest quality ingredients possible. If you don't grow your own tomatoes, go to a farmer's market and pick some out. This is where you can get creative with colors, shapes, and sizes.
• On the topic of ingredients, the basil you get must be fresh, even if it's from out of a plastic package in the produce section. No excuses. 
• If balsamic glaze isn't your thing, you can leave it off, but make sure you pick a good quality olive oil. You want something to tie all the flavors together.
• 1 lb. each of tomatoes and mozzarella will serve 6-8.
• Do not refrigerate your tomatoes.
• Be creative!