Caprese with Balsamic Aioli
Simple flavors make for delicious food experiences.
The simplicity of a Caprese salad can be set out in a variety of ways to enjoy.
I skewered grape tomatoes with balls of mozzarella on plastic party picks making them nice and easy to remove and no risk of splinters from wood picks.
You don’t have to skewer them if you’d like to serve them just placed around the dip use a large spoon to serve with.
I added some sliced avocado and large marinated green olives, so feel free to keep it simpler or add in your favorites.
This makes a great salad course to a meal or you can serve it as an appetizer.
I used about 1/2 a container of grape tomatoes, and a full 8oz container of cherry-sized mozzarella balls, added about 6 leaves of fresh basil, some large green olives, an avocado and lined the dish with spinach leaves.
It not only looked pretty… it tasted great.
The best part about serving this type of salad on a platter is that everyone can enjoy as much or as little as they want. You can customize it with spicier olives or peppers, or add more vegetables like sliced zucchini.
The colors are so pretty everyone is sure to dig right in!
I added a bunch of spinach to the dip so it wouldn’t be an unappetizing color, there is white balsamic but it tends to be a little sweeter I think, plus I think every salad lover has a great balsamic on hand. I know I do!
The sauce is the real winner here. Nothing beats a freshly made sauce with fresh herbs. The flavors were amazing. Be sure to make it about 30 minutes ahead of time so it has time to develop a great flavor and to thicken in the fridge before serving.
The sauce is the real winner here. Nothing beats a freshly made sauce with fresh herbs. The flavors were amazing. Be sure to make it about 30 minutes ahead of time so it has time to develop a great flavor and to thicken in the fridge before serving.
Caprese with Balsamic Aioli
Ingredients
- 1/2 cup oil (I typically use vegetable oil
- 1 egg
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
- 1 1/2 cups fresh spinach
- 10 + leaves fresh basil
- 15 leaves fresh oregano or use 1/4 teaspoon dry
- 1/2 teaspoon salt I use coarse kosher salt
- 1/4 teaspoon black pepper
Instructions
- You can make an aioli sauce with an immersion blender (that is what I typically use) or a food processor.
- Add all the ingredients if you're using an immersion blender and after you turn it on as it's resting on the bottom pull it up to create a whirl and then blend up and down until completely mixed.
- If you're using a food processor, don't' add the oil, drizzle it in from the opening on the top area, slowly drizzle so the sauce will blend and emulsify and thicken.
- The sauce thickens as it chills.
- Chill 30 minutes in a glass jar with a lid on.
- Serve with Caprese salad, vegetables or drizzled over cooked chicken is also delicious.
- (if you don't add the spinach the sauce will be brownish and less appetizing, the green spinach gave it a great flavor and boosted the veggie content too.
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