On today’s menu we have an Insalata Caprese on a bed of sautéed basil, sun dried tomatoes, onions, and lemon juice. I topped the dish with a garlic pesto and extra virgin olive oil – as per Italian tradition. The whole thing is over a drizzle of balsamic reduction.
For those who don’t know, Insalata Caprese is a salad of tomato, mozzarella di bufala, basil, and olive oil (literally translated – ‘Capri salad’ – Capri is an Italian island) . As the aforementioned tradition goes, sun dried tomatoes and vinegar have no place in this dish, but I added them because I am the executive chef of my kitchen and could throw in a piece of watermelon and top it with chocolate frosting if I dang well pleased. Haha. Plus the only recipes I could find were kind of boring, sticking to it’s 4 main ingredients.
So! I made my own.
The wine that I paired with this dish was inspired by our new friends Nick and Sarah over at www.bordeaux-undiscovered.co.uk. It was a white Bordeaux from the Chateau Tour de Mirambeau Reserve 05′ produced by Despangne. I’ll be reviewing it and giving tasting notes in the next ‘This week in wine’ entry.
De-licious.
-Johnny
Tags: bordeaux, Insalata Caprese
October 20, 2007 at 5:18 pm
Ok, I am tired of you teasing me with all of your cooking….. When do I get the chance to taste your wonderful cooking ??? And by the way the presentation looks wonderful…. You are getting better at it!!!!!!!!