I had 10 minutes to come up with an appetizer for a finger-food-themed cocktail party, and that's all the time it took for my kids and me to assemble these cute tomato & mozzarella skewers.  They're easy finger food in a convenient single-bite size.

Caprese salad is a famous and simple Italian salad of tomatoes, mozzarella cheese, and basil.  There's a recipe for it in our cookbook, using pre-sliced fresh mozzarella cheese at Trader Joe's.  If you like Caprese salad, these are the same flavors on fun skewers.

Summer is a great time of year to make Caprese salad or skewers, when tomatoes are in season and basil is in full bloom. With fresh ingredients like these, there's little need for any seasoning other than fruity olive oil and a sprinkle of salt and black pepper.



Caprese Skewers

1 (8 oz) container Ciliegine fresh mozzarella balls
1 (8 oz) pkg cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes
1 bunch fresh basil leaves
Olive oil, or garlic-infused olive oil for more flavor**
Sea salt
Black pepper
Small wooden skewers

1. If using short skewers, thread one mozzarella ball, one tomato, and one whole basil leaf onto each skewer.  You can even wrap a basil leaf around a mozzarella ball and skewer it.  If using longer skewers, thread two of each onto each stick.

2. Drizzle generously with olive oil.  Sprinkle with sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.

**Note: You can make your own garlic-infused olive oil by slowly heating olive oil and sliced garlic in a pan.  When edges of garlic start to brown, remove from heat.  Let cool to room temperature, and discard garlic slices.

Prep time: 15 minutes
Makes 24 appetizers