My Basil Obsession Continues

You can go to an italian restaurant without the guilt!  I am a tomato fan, a mozzarella cheese fan and a huge basil fan.  I eat these thing sometimes at home separately and together, but never thought to order something like this when I am out to eat.  Usually when I am out to eat I don't think about calories and I just like to enjoy myself on a cheat day, but instead of getting a plain garden salad all the time that is high in bad fat because of all the ranch dressing I switched it up.  At the Macaroni Grill I saw a caprese salad on the pantry section of their menu.  It cost more then your normal side salad, but I just had to have it.

It was amazing!  So many good flavors, a lot of healthy vegetables and surprisingly filling.  Caprese salads are definitely something I will keep in mind when I am out at restaurants deciding what to eat.  This salad didn't just have your typical tomato, mozzarella cheese and basil, but it also had onions and a vegetable that I am not sure what it was.  It might've been a turnips or something along those lines, whatever it was it was delicious!

That inspired THIS...

Caprese Salad Pizza

The recipe calls for:
whole wheat pie crust
2/3 cup fresh mozzarella, sliced
2 tomatoes, sliced
2 cups fresh basil
2 garlic cloves, minced
1/2 tsp salt
1/2 tsp pepper
1/4 cup olive oil

-- Preheat the oven to 425 degrees.
-- Blanch the basil leaves for 10 seconds in hot water and then immediately cool in an ice bath.  Squeeze out all the water and put the leave into a blender.
-- Add the oil, salt, pepper and garlic to the blender and blend until smooth.
-- Brush the basil oil on the pie crust, top with the slices of cheese and tomato.
-- Bake for about 10 minutes.