8 Italian Roma tomatoes,, cut in half
2 tablespoons olive oil
Essence
2/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup balsamic vinegar
3 tablespoons chiffonade of basil
1/2 small red onion,, julienned
Salt and pepper
1 beef steak tomato,, cut into 6 slices
1 yellow beef steak tomato,, cut into 6 slices
8 slices of fresh mozzarella cheese
4 cups assorted baby greens
4 fried green tomatoes,, for top of salad
Black pepper for the rim
Edible flowers
Preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Toss the Roma tomatoes with the olive oil and season with Essence. Place the tomatoes, seed side down, on a baking sheet and roast for about 8-10 minutes. Remove from the oven and cool. Julienne the tomatoes. In a mixing bowl, whisk the extra-virgin olive oil, balsamic vinegar, garlic, basil and red onion together. Add the julienned tomatoes.
Season the vinaigrette with salt and pepper. Season each side of the tomato slices with salt and pepper. Season each side of the mozzarella slices with salt and pepper. Toss the greens with 2/3 of the vinaigrette. Reserve the remaining dressing. Alternate layering the tomatoes, cheese and greens. Use 3 slices each of the tomatoes and cheese plus 1 cup of the greens for each salad. Garnish each salad with the fried green tomato, remaining vinaigrette, black pepper on the rim, parsley, and edible flowers.
Yield: 4 serving
