Summer feels as if it is moving at a lightening speed pace. Signs of the fall are already appearing. The first harvest of pumpkins is already appearing in the grocery stores and it is barely mid-August. Yikes. Quite possibly it is a function of my chronological age, but I want time to slow down just a bit or at least have more days feeling reminiscent of my youth. Days that seemed to go on endlessly, where an hour felt like an eternity, and where summer kept fall at bay for as long as possible. And here in the midwest, with only one season for tomatoes I want it, no I need it, to last as long as possible. Especially now that I have discovered what Yotam Ottolenghi's Marinated Buffalo Mozzarella and Tomato Salad tastes like. My search for the most descriptive culinary adjectives to describe what might be a perfect tomato salad is temporarily hindered by the use of the regressively youthful exclamation: OMG.
I thought the Marinated Buffalo Mozzarella and Tomato Salad would be a great compliment to the Mussels in Roasted Garlic Cream Sauce and a perfect post Saturday Farmer's Market lunch. After picking up beautifully ripened red and heirloom tomatoes, a bunch of fresh basil, and a loaf of sourdough bread at the market, I only needed to make a stop at Whole Foods to pick up the Buffalo Mozzarella and mussels.
The tomatoes were so beautiful at the Farmer's Market this week I couldn't help but buy more than was needed for this salad.
Fresh mozzarella di bufula is made from the milk of the Italian water buffalo, considered to be the richest milk in the cheesemaking arsenal. It has more than twice as much butterfat as cow's milk resulting in a cheese that is decadently creamier and more flavorful. It is has been described as being feather-light and unmistakably rich, delicate and assertively full-flavored, and slightly tangy and buttery all at once. Buffalo mozzarella is love at first bite. There is only downside to this cheese: its' accessibility. But I urge you to find a store selling this cheese relatively close to where you live. Even if relatively close means as much as an hour round trip drive. Because this salad is not the same made with any other kind of mozzarella cheese.
The flavors of this Marinated Buffalo Mozzarella and Tomato Salad play brilliantly in the sandbox with one another. Toasted fennel seeds, lemon zest, freshly chopped oregano and basil, crushed garlic, sea salt, along with grapeseed and extra-virgin olive oils create a marinade for the buffalo mozzarella that will take your palate by complete surprise. One of those best kinds of unexpected surprises.
Two to four fresh tomatoes are cut into wedges. Whether you choose to use red, yellow, heirloom tomatoes, or any combination of all three, use ones you can get from a garden or a farmer's market. In other words, you want tomatoes that are at their optimal texture and taste (unlike the tomatoes that have been refrigerated).
After the buffalo mozzarella marinates for 15 to 30 minutes and the lightly sprinkled with sea salt tomato wedges are placed on the platter, the salad is finished with a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.
Served with freshly sliced sourdough or Italian country loaf bread it is hearty enough to be a main course, a great starter to a meal, or the only side you need if serving with fish, chicken or beef.
The Marinated Buffalo Mozzarella and Tomato Salad and Mussels with Roasted Garlic Cream Sauce made for an amazing lunch. After going to an outdoor concert where the average age of those in attendance appeared to be at least 70 and spending several hours rearranging and moving furniture in the home of another friend earlier in the week, it was not only the perfect reward lunch for me and my childhood best friend, it was a perfect lunch. At the end of our well-deserved leisurely meal, we both agreed the salad and mussels were worthy of being placed on the 'last meal' list.
Recipe
Marinated Buffalo Mozzarella and Tomato Salad (a Yotam Ottolenghi recipe from Plenty)
Ingredients
1/2 teaspoon fennel seeds
Grated zest of 1 lemon
15 basil leaves, shredded
2 teaspoons fresh oregano, chopped
2 teaspoons high quality extra-virgin olive oil, plus extra for finishing
2 teaspoons grapeseed oil
1 clove garlic, crushed
1/2 teaspoon Maldon sea salt, plus additional for seasoning cut tomatoes
pinch of black pepper
8-9 ounces buffalo mozzarella
2-4 ripe tomatoes (red, heirloom, yellow or combination)
Optional: Loaf of sourdough or hearty italian country bread sliced thickly
Directions
1. Scatter fennel seeds in small frying pan over medium heat. Dry roast until fennel begins to pop and/or the the fragrance is released.
2. Transfer fennel seeds to a mortar and pestle and crush.
3. In a medium sized bowl, mix together the basil, oregano, lemon zest, olive oil, grape seed oil, sea salt, pepper, crushed fennel seeds, and crushed garlic. Set aside.
4. Break balls of buffalo mozzarella roughly with your hands. Smear with marinade and set aside to marinate for 15-30 minutes.
5. Cut tomatoes in wedges.
6. Transfer marinated mozzarella to large platter, scatter cut tomatoes along edges, sprinkle tomatoes with additional sea salt, and drizzle extra-virgin olive oil over cheese and tomatoes.
7. Serve immediately with thickly cut slices of fresh sourdough or country loaf.
