You Said a Little Mouthful!

A favorite early autumn treat is a plate of thickly sliced fresh tomato, layered with slices of fresh mozzarella, fresh basil leaves and a drizzle of extra-virgin olive oil.

The tomatoes and basil are from my garden, and the mozzarella and olive oil are from a foray to Brooklyn or the Bronx.

Fresh mozzarella is different from the regular packaged mozzarella. When you go to a deli in NYC, you will find them in either little balls, called bocconcini (translated as “little mouthfuls”), or assorted shapes of about one pound, floating in lightly salted water. Sometimes if you are lucky, you will get to watch them making it right then and there.

Authentic fresh mozzarella, (buffalo mozzarella), originated in the southern Italian region of Campania, and is made from the milk of the water buffalo. The water buffalo was introduced from India to Italy in the 16th century for farmwork. Fresh mozzarella is best eaten uncooked and the same day it is purchased.
Low-moisture mozzarella is the type most often found packaged in supermarkets. It is made from whole, part-skim, or skim milk, formed into a block, and cut into half-pound or one-pound rectangles.

Most small producers who make the cheese by hand offer only the whole milk type, still not a very fattening cheese at 100 calories per ounce.

It takes five quarts of milk to produce a single pound of curd. When the curd is made for mozzarella, the whey that is drained off is used to make ricotta cheese. This is why most commercial producers make both mozzarella and ricotta cheese.

Low-moisture mozzarella is excellent for cooking. You will also find low-moisture mozzarella formed into sticks, string, or braids, as well as filled with prosciutto or pepperoni and rolled up jelly roll-style. Slice these and serve on cheese trays as appetizers. Unusual variations are flavored with black peppercorns or pistachios, smoked, or marinated with olive oil and red pepper.

Once considered a poor man’s food, mozzarella is placed up on a pedestal in my house. This mild-flavored cheese makes fresh, ripe tomatoes sing.


Caprese Mozzarella and Tomato Salad
4 cups mixed greens
4 large beefsteak tomatoes, sliced
4 yellow tomatoes, sliced
1 cup fresh basil leaves
8 ounces fresh mozzarella balls, sliced
Salt
Pepper
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
Place greens on large serving platter. Place tomatoes and mozzarella in a concentric circle, alternating with red tomato, yellow tomato, mozzarella slice, and so on. Place basil leaves on top. Sprinkles with salt and pepper to taste, and drizzle with olive oil.
Serves 8.


Fresh Mozzarella Filled with Spinach and Roasted Peppers
4 ounces fresh mozzarella cheese
3/4 pound fresh spinach, steamed
2 roasted red peppers sliced lengthwise
2 cups mixed salad greens
2 tomatoes, sliced
1 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
1 tablespoon extra-virgin olive oil
Flatten fresh mozzarella to 1/2-inch thickness. Layer with spinach, and roasted peppers. Roll up jellyroll fashion from longest end. Slice and serve with greens and tomato slices drizzled with balsamic vinegar and olive oil.
Serves 4.