Caprese Kabobs

One of my absolute favorite dishes to eat is a good Caprese salad. For those of you that may not know, a Caprese salad consists of tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, balsamic vinaigrette and basil. Those are the basic ingredients and depending where you are, there are quite a few variations. My favorite variation has been adding avocado, which I discovered on a visit to my friend Sara's place in San Diego!

These Caprese Kabobs came about due to a need for finger food to bring to a party. This is so quick and easy to make and truly a big hit!!

Ingredients;

2 containers of Ciliegine Mozzarella or 1 log of mozzarella (I like the Bel Gioioso brand.)

2 containers of grape or cherry tomatoes

fresh basil leaves

2-4 cloves of garlic

1/3 cup of extra virgin olive oil

balsamic vinaigrette

ground pepper and coarse salt to taste

fancy or colored toothpicks

Instructions;

1. Put the oil into a small bowl. Mince the garlic and add it to the oil. The longer you can let the garlic sit in the oil, the better. Try for at least 45 minutes!

2. Drain and dry your mozzarella. I just pat it with paper towels. Then salt and pepper the mozzarella to your preference. I'm not a huge salt fan but like this cheese to be well salted. Taste as you go to get it just right.

3. Wash and pat dry your tomatoes. Rinse the basil and tear it into small pieces roughly the size of the cheese or tomatoes. If you don't have access to fresh basil, skip this step and sprinkle your finished product with dried basil once it's been plated.... the fresh really does give it something special though!

4. To make the kabobs, add one piece of mozzarella, a basil leaf and a tomato to each toothpick. Set them on whatever plate/platter you'll use for serving. Do this until you run out of tomatoes or cheese, whichever happens first!

5. Once you have the kabobs plated, spoon your oil evenly over the top of the kabobs... I prefer not to get the garlic chucks all over the kabobs but if you're into garlic, go for it! At this point I typically add a bit more salt and pepper.

6. You can refrigerate this until you're ready to serve it, I do prefer to give it about 30 minutes to come to room temperature thought. Serve with a small bowl of vinaigrette for dipping or if you really want to go crazy spoon some over the top of the kabobs.

Enjoy!