Summer Tomato Antipasti

Every Saturday, I attend the Baton Rouge Farmer’s Market (“Red Stick Market“) with my boyfriend for the best kind of weekend ritual: shopping and tasting fresh Louisiana produce.  Hot southern tomatoes make up one of my favorite vegetables–their beautiful red, yellow, and plum colors add natural brightness to any salad, their grape-size texture explode in your mouth like a savory grape, and they’re the one vegetable my kitchen cannot go a day without.  Using south Louisiana tomatoes is an easy technique whether crafting dishes sweet or savory.

Pictured: ripe south Louisiana tomatoes at the Red Stick Farmer’s Market (photo courtesy of Jon Barry).

Simple Antipasti with Basil and Olive Oil: as the title of today’s recipe suggests, my favorite summer fruit/vegetable (which is it, really?) works best when plated center stage.  Whether eating it as an appetizer, a side dish, or salad, serve fresh cherry and/or grape tomatoes with olive oil, basil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Skip the fried calamari rings, the chicken fingers, and any other heavy batter and meat flavored dish.  You’ll be smiling and happy with just a few bites of nature’s finest multi-colored fruit.

Pictured: nature’s finest multi-colored fruit plates beautifully by itself with a light vinaigrette of olive oil, salt, pepper, and basil.

Looking for another take on antipasti that’s hardier and more like a meal? Try adapting this to the Red and Yellow Bruschetta of last summer’s post.  Toss tomatoes with red and yellow peppers to compliment the shades of the dish, add a similar vinaigrette of olive oil and spices, and bed mixture on toasted baguette for a hardier variation of a delicious antipasti.  One bite and you’ll have another reason to return to our–or your–local Farmer’s Market.

Summer Tomato Antipasti

Fresh Louisiana tomatoes work beautifully in this recipe, but any fresh, seasonal, and ripe tomato near you will substitute just fine.

Ingredients:

* 1 pint cherry or grape tomatoes, washed and halved

* 1/2 cup basil, chopped fine

* 1 cup mozzarella, cubed

* 4 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

* Salt and pepper, to taste

1.) Wash tomatoes and basil and pat dry.  Cut tomatoes in half and add to a bowl.  Chop basil finely and cube mozzarella.  Toss ingredients with halved tomatoes, olive oil, and salt and pepper to taste.  Serve chilled or at room temperature.

Makes 4 servings.

–Helana Brigman

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