What could be simpler than a Caprese salad. Or Caprese sandwich. The trick to a good Caprese is great quality mozzarella cheese and fresh, sweet tomatoes. Add in some basil and salt and pepper and you are set.

If you have read my reviews of Bistro at Oakwood and the Flour Works here in Pune, you will know that I am not satisfied with what is presented as a Caprese Sandwich or a Panini in general. Grill a Caprese sandwich, and you have the simplest Panini or a toasted Caprese sandwich. But it is important to get the Caprese right first.

The basic elements of a Caprese sandwich recipe  are tomato, mozzarella and fresh basil. A simple seasoning of salt and fresh cracked black pepper. Maybe a drizzle of balsamic. That’s it. You have a healthy Caprese sandwich recipe. Some people go a step ahead and make a basil pesto instead of just using basil leaves. And making that Caprese pesto sandwich is fine. But I think using the right cheese and tomatoes is more important than making a pesto here.

Until recently, it was very hard to get good quality mozzarella cheese here in Pune. So I could understand people being stingy with the cheese. But why be stingy with the tomatoes? Tomatoes are an average of 40 rupees per kilo most of the time, if not lower. And these Caprese sandwiches are sold for anything from 300 bucks and up!

Rants aside, I wanted to illustrate a fine caprese sandwich recipe here on the blog since a long time. The opportunity presented itself when I came across a brand of mozzarella called La Cremella. I am simply in love with their cheese. They have cream cheese, ricotta, mascarpone too, opening up a wealth of possibilities for cheese based recipes.

The mozzarella turned out to be much better than anything available at a reasonable price locally. It is not as fresh as mozzarella made the same day, but I am not complaining.

I also got some good ciabatta rolls, turning the tide in favor of a caprese sandwich rather than a caprese salad. Since the bread was so dense and chewy, I made a balsamic dressing to drizzle on the bread.

I hope you are enjoying the photos of the caprese sandwich? I took dozens. I just can’t get enough of them.

The recipe, something very simple, follows.

 Caprese Sandwich is a great recipe for newbies. A good way to impress anyone without slaving in the kitchen for a long time. You can serve this fresh as I did. Or you can grill it in a sandwich maker and serve it as a Panini. Either way it is bound to be super delicious.

Don’t forget to PIN these lovely photos :).