Scrounging with Leftovers: Israeli Salad

Things that are good: buying ingredients that work for multiple dishes.This seems to be my theme of the week, and the great thing is that this gets you to do a lot of experimenting (and gets you the biggest bang for your buck!) 

Woes of a not-vastly stocked kitchen - everything is apparently red

Almond slivers instead of pine nuts? Well how about an almond pesto and toasting up the rest to use with the sauteed string beans. Tomatoes, basil and mozzarella? The possibilities are almost endless: paninis, caprese salad, classic pizza, pasta salad, and more, yum.

Originally I had wanted to use the leftover basil and mozzarella for an heirloom tomato salad (and since I now still have extra basil, I'm thinking marinara sauce later this week). I was hoping to find some gorgeous little red, yellow and orange tomatoes, perfect for the end of summer, at Shop and Stop, but sadly they don't seem to carry them. Plus I ran out of mozzarella after the pizza. So instead of the colorful tomatoes and creamy cheese, I substituted red onions, cucumbers and a little freshly grated Parmesan cheese (okay fine it was Kraft from a box, but you should freshly grate if you have the time!).

You will need:

Fresh Basil

Tomatoes (cherry or vine tomatoes work great!)

Red onions

Cucumbers - peeled and thickly chopped

Balsamic Vinegar

Olive Oil

Salt and pepper to taste

Parmesan (or maybe feta!) cheese (optional)

Chop the vegetables and toss in a bowl with the balsamic vinegar and olive oil. Season with salt and pepper and garnish with the chopped basil. (You can dice the salad more finely if you like, but I like to keep it on the chunkier side). If you can, refrigerate the salad for 30-60 minutes, this allows all the ingredients to blend together and really brings out the flavor, but if your pressed for time, Enjoy!