TOMATO, OLIVE, AND FRESH MOZZARELLA SALAD WITH BASIL VINAIGRETTE

TOMATO, OLIVE, AND FRESH MOZZARELLA SALAD WITH BASIL VINAIGRETTE

You can enjoy all the flavors of summer in this low-carb and gluten-free Tomato, Olive, and Fresh Mozzarella Salad with Basil Vinaigrette. This tasty salad combination is low-carb, gluten-free, low-glycemic, meatless, and South Beach Diet friendly. Use the Recipes-by-Diet-Type Index to find more recipes like this one.

This Tomato, Olive, and Fresh Mozzarella Salad with Basil Vinaigrette is the perfect salad to make when it’s fresh tomato season and your garden is bursting with tomatoes and fresh basil. However it can also have mood-enhancing properties if it’s a very rainy first week of summer where you live, even if you have to buy tomatoes from Costco and it takes every basil leaf you can manage to snip from your puny plants.

Ingredients:

1 can large black olives, cut in half (6 oz. olives after draining)
3 cups cherry tomatoes, cut in half
1 cup fresh mozzarella pearls, cut in half (or use regular fresh mozzarella and cut into pieces
1/2 cup vinaigrette dressing (I used my favorite vinaigrette, but any type of homemade or bottled vinaigrette that you like will work. A good choice would be Newman’s Own Olive Oil and Vinegar Dressing, which is widely available and has only 1 gram of sugar.)
1/2 cup chopped or torn fresh basil leaves
salt and fresh ground black pepper to taste

Instructions:

Drain olives and fresh mozzarella pearls while you cut cherry tomatoes in half; place tomatoes in bowl. Cut olives and mozzarella pearls in half and put in bowl with tomatoes.
Wash basil and spin dry in salad spinner or dry with paper towels, then chop or tear basil into small pieces. Mix chopped basil into vinaigrette dressing, then gently combine dressing with the tomato mixture. Season to taste with fresh ground black pepper and serve immediately.

Recipe Source:kalynskitchen.com