During the summer months, one of my favorite dishes to enjoy is caprese salad. I love how fresh and in-season the tomatoes and basil are, and I really love how it’s basically an excuse to eat gobs of mozzerella cheese, judgment-free.
I’ve been thinking about ways to transition summer dishes into the cooler months, and I knew I had to figure out how to take a caprese salad from August to September. This version starts with slow-roasted tomatoes and garlic, which has gotta be one of my favorite flavor combos of all time. If you’ve never taken the time to really slow-roast a tomato or a whole garlic clove, you’ve gotta try it. When cooked on low heat for a long time, tomatoes get super sweet…almost jammy, and garlic transforms into an earthy, nutty, golden umami morsel of just straight deliciousness. Pair these two slow-roasted beauts with heaps of marinated mozzarella, toasted bread and balsamic glaze, and you’ve got yourself a dish that expertly splits the difference between summer and fall.
I served this alongside tagliatelle with shrimp, arugula and pesto, and it was the perfect balance of rustic, comfort food and lighter fare. You can get the recipe for the pesto here.
Roasted Skillet Caprese Dip
This fall spin on a summer classic is the perfect blend of comfort food and fresh flavors.
Ingredients
- 1 10 oz cherry or grape tomatoes {halved}
- Several whole garlic cloves {depending how garlicky you like it}
- 1 8 ounce container mini mozzarella balls {halved}
- 2 tsp dried basil
- 1/4 tsp crushed red chili flakes
- 1 loaf store-bought bread of your choice {I use whole wheat french loaf}
- store-bought balsamic glaze
- extra virgin olive oil, salt and pepper {to taste}
Instructions
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Preheat an oven to 250 degrees. Place sliced tomatoes, cut side up, and whole garlic cloves in a cast iron skillet and drizzle with olive oil, salt and pepper. Roast for 40 minutes.
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Bump the heat to 275 degrees, add cheese and 1 tsp dried basil and the crushed red chili flakes to the skillet, and continue roasting until cheese has melted, about 10-15 minutes.
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Once cheese is melted, bump the heat to broil and broil for 3-5 minutes, until cheese is a bit brown on top and a few of the tomatoes have charred.
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While the dip is roasting, prepare the bread by slicing it into 1/2 thick pieces, sprinkling it with the remaining dried basil leaves, drizzling it with olive oil and roasting at 375 for 10-12 minutes, until slightly brown.
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Serve dip with the toasted bread and a (liberal) drizzle of store-bought balsamic glaze. Enjoy!
Recipe Notes
Calories and nutritional information are for cheese dip only and do not include bread.
