For a totally simple yet totally delicious salad, you won't go far wrong with a lovely "Caprese" creation.

For those who haven't had the chance to experience one of those yet, they are simply slices of garden ripe tomatoes alternating with slices of fresh creamy Mozzarella cheese, aromatic basil, drizzeled with good olive oil and seasoned with salt and pepper. How easy is that?

For a cookout over the 4th Holiday weekend, wuff decided to do a riff on the traditional Caprese to make it more approachable to a pot-luck style crowd, and to stretch the amount a bit to make it somewhat less expensive while feeding more folks.

The result was still completely delicious! Light, lovely combination of flavors, simple to spoon onto a picnic plate, and enough to feed as a side for about 10-12 folks when combined with the other goodies there (like the potato salad, pasta salad, dips, etc.).

Nice thing for a furry cook, this totally easy recipe can be put together with about 15 minutes kitchen time and a bit of resting in the 'fridge to chill and let the flavors meld.

Note: Though the good mozzarella and fresh basil will hike the price on this a little, its still a VERY economical dish! Especially when split up for the "per serving" price. And for those with your own herb garden, this can save you 2-3$ over the price of market herbs for this creation.

Though the fresh mozzarella and grated cheddar cheese will set you back about $10 for this, that shouldn't dissuade you from giving it a try. The easy prep and luscious flavors are worth the cost of that cheese and the other ingredients. And on a per-serving basis, this is still under 2$ a person.

ENJOY!

INGREDIENTS:
Approx 1oz Fresh Cut Basil leaves
1 pt tiny, sweet "Grape" or "Cherry" or similar tomatoes
1 ea 12 oz pkg Formaggio Marinated Fresh Mozzarella Cheese (in Italian spices & olive oil)
1 ea 8 oz pkg Fresh Mozzarella Cheese balls (in water)
1/2 (~5oz) Hot House (English seedless) Cucumber, sliced thin
1/2 (~4oz) small Yellow Summer Squash, sliced thin
Approx 1 oz Fresh Cut Curly Parsley, chopped
2-3 oz grated Sharp Cheddar Cheese
Sprinkle sea salt
Several generous grinds of Black Pepper

Optional: 1-2 TBS of Ken's Steakhouse Sweet Vidalia Onion Dressing

DIRECTIONS:
Slice the small tomatoes in half. Not totally necessary, but allows them to be better distributed among the other ingredients
Slice the cucumber into 2 halves, then slice one of those in half lengthwise. Cut into thin slices
Slice the yellow squash into 2 halves, then slice one of those in half lengthwise. Cut into thin slices
Drain the water from Fresh Mozzarella (but NOT the oil & spices from the marinated mozzarella!).

Add all the sliced veggies, the drained fresh mozzarella, and the marinated mozzarella WITH the olive oil and spices to a large serving bowl

Separate the fresh basil leaves from their stems and tear into small bits. Sprinkle over the salad.
Sprinkle the chopped parsley and the grated cheddar cheese over the salad

Season with several good hearty grinds of black pepper, but DON'T add the salt just yet (it will draw out the liquids while the salad is resting in the fridge).

Toss everything to distribute all the ingredients. Cover with plastic wrap, cover, or a plate and refrigerate for about an hour to chill and let flavors combine

Just before serving, season with a sprinkle of sea salt and toss again. Taste, and adjust salt and pepper as desired

Note: The recipe to this point will give a nice "Italian olive oil dressing" flavor to the dish from the use of the marinade the "Formaggio" cheese balls were in. If you like a little sweetness with this, add an OPTIONAL TBS or 2 of Ken's Sweet Vidalia dressing and mix it in

Serve immediately while still chilled and before the salt wilts the veggies

!DEVOUR!