It’s mid-July and I’m pretty sure we’ve all had our fair share of caprese salads by now. To me, there’s nothing quite like the delicious flavor of vine-ripe tomatoes, fresh mozzarella and basil. A generous glug of good, spicy olive oil and some crunchy salt is all you need to make these ingredients sing. There just couldn’t be a simpler summertime salad.

But sometimes it’s nice to try something a little different. I’ve been swapping my fresh mozzarella for chèvre as of late. There’s also this idea from Tim, the creative culinary mind behind the blog Lottie & Doof, who has this wonderful recipe for Marinated Mozzarella.

It combines fennel seeds, lemon zest, fresh basil, garlic and oregano with olive oil to make an incredibly aromatic marinade that the mozzarella sits in, soaking up all of those bright, fresh flavors. At the last minute, you add tomatoes of your choice and a sprinkling of good Maldon sea salt. 

If you’ve got some bread on hand then you’ve also got the perfect vessel to soak up all that sweet herbed tomato juice. If not, tip your plate back and drink it down. Trust me…this just might be the best part of a marinated mozzarella and tomato salad.