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Peach Caprese Salad
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Peach Caprese Salad

For a colorful twist on the Italian classic, peaches stand in for tomatoes in this Peach Caprese Salad.
Servings 4

Ingredients

  • 3 tablespoons good quality olive oil
  • 3 teaspoons white balsamic vinegar (or white wine vinegar—see Kitchen Notes)
  • salt and freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 firm-ripe peaches
  • 4 generous handfuls of mixed greens
  • 8 ounces or more fresh mozzarella, sliced into rounds (see Kitchen Notes)
  • 2 to 3 tablespoons chopped fresh basil

Instructions

  • Whisk olive oil and vinegar together in a small bowl to make a vinaigrette. Season to taste with salt and pepper and set aside.
  • Halve the peaches, remove pits and slice into rounds. Many of the peach rounds will have holes in the middle where the pit was. That's fine. In a large bowl, toss the mixed greens with about half the vinaigrette.
  • Arrange the greens on a platter or divide them among 4 salad plates. Arrange alternating slices of peach and mozzarella along the center of the platter or on each plate. Drizzle additional vinaigrette over the peaches and mozzarella. Sprinkle with chopped basil. Serve.

Kitchen Notes

I can see clearly now. I chose white balsamic vinegar instead of the standard dark variety for purely visual reasons: Working with white cheese and the golden peach slices, I didn't want to use a dark dressing. White wine vinegar will work too—or you can not worry about the color and just use regular balsamic vinegar.
Fresh mozzarella. The pre-packaged, sliced dry stuff you use for pizza is fine—for pizza. For this, you want fresh mozzarella packed in water. Keep it in the fridge until you're ready to slice it, then use a serrated knife to get thin slices.
Measure twice, cut once, enjoy the leftovers. Some of the measurements I've given in this recipe are less precise than I usually like to provide. As you assemble the salad, you're going to have either extra peach rounds or extra mozzarella slices at the end. Either is delicious on its own. Pop the leftovers in a little container in the fridge and consider them a secret reward for the cook for later.