Baked Panzanella Caprese
Description
I saw this being made by Giada De Laurentiis on the Food Network, and had to pretty much make it straight away. I used it as an appetizer but it would also be a great light lunch or dinner with a bowl of soup…enjoy!
Ingredients
Baked Panzanella Caprese
olive oil – for greasing the baking sheet
5 fresh, ripe tomatoes, cut into 1/2-inch slices
2–3 T. balsamic vinegar
1 lb./454 g fresh mozzarella, patted dry with paper towels and cut into 1/4-inch slices
4–6 cloves of garlic, minced
1/2 c. packed, chopped fresh basil
olive oil, for drizzling
salt and freshly ground pepper
6–8 thick cut slices of good white bread (I used 8 slices)
fresh cherry or grape tomatoes for serving
Instructions
Preheat the oven to 375 and lightly grease a large rimmed baking sheet with olive oil. Cover the prepared sheet with a single layer of the sliced tomatoes, and then drizzle the tomatoes with the balsamic vinegar.
Lay the cheese slices in a single layer over the tomatoes, then evenly sprinkle on all of the garlic and basil. At this point you can drizzle on a bit more olive oil but I used hardly any since I greased the pan with it (and will use even less next time).
Season liberally with salt and pepper (to taste), and then arrange the bread slices over top everything. I baked mine for about 10 minutes with a sheet of foil placed lightly over top, then I removed the foil and baked it for about another 15 minutes.
The bread should be nicely toasted (it may or may not be brown) and the cheese should be beautifully melted – serve in 1/2 to 1 bread slice servings (bread side up!) and garnish with fresh cherry or grape tomatoes.
- Category: Appetizers
