Summer Tomato Salad with Goat Cheese, Basil Vinaigrette, and Fresh Herbs

Ingredients

• 2-3 thickly sliced tomatoes
• 1-2 T crumbled goat cheese
• 1-2 T basil vinaigrette
• 1-2 tsp. chopped fresh herbs
• sea salt and fresh ground black pepper if desired

Directions

Basic Salad Directions:Slice tomatoes in thick slices, half-moon slices, or even large diced pieces if using small tomatoes. Arrange tomatoes on seving dish.Drizzle tomatoes with basil vinaigrette, then sprinkle goat cheese and chopped herbs over. (Leave the cheese in the refrigerator until you’re ready to use it, or it will get too soft and be hard to crumble.)You can season with sea salt and fresh ground black pepper if desired, but I find this is one of the few ways to serve tomatoes that doesn’t really need salt.Basil Vinaigrette Options; All These Variations are Amazing:Combine chopped basil and olive oil to make basil puree, then mix pureed basil with your favorite vinaigrette or Italian dressing. (More about Basil Vinaigrette with basil puree here. This is my preferred method for intense basil flavor.)Combine finely chopped fresh basil and your favorite Vinaigrette or Italian dressing in a jar and shake. If you can do this an hour or so beforehand it will let the flavors blend, but it’s not essential.If you’re a gardener who has frozen basil in the freezer, the frozen basil mixed with your favorite vinaigrette or Italian dressing is an easy way to make basil vinaigrette.4) If you don’t have any fresh or frozen basil, purchased basil pesto mixed with your favorite vinaigrette or Italian dressing will also make a delicious basil vinaigrette.