Tomato, Mozzarella and Arugula Towers

Sometimes the simplest things in life are the sweetest.

Like sleeping in an hour. Or being able to roll your window down while driving. Like when that man of mine does my dishes.

I have a million examples. I can't say that I have always been this way but I have learned to appreciate the simple things; the things that your average person may take for granted.

This dish is a great example of that. It's so simple that it seems almost boring...until you take a bite that is.

That man of mine and I started our very simple and sweet Valentine's Day dinner together with this salad. He was surprised to like it as much as he did and I was surprised that it had as much flavor as it did.

I highly recommend this for someone looking to steer away from their standard everyday salad. It's even better when it is the "opening act" of an Italian dinner.

Tomato, Mozzarella and Arugula Towers
From Skinnytaste.com

Ingredients:

1/4 cup chopped fresh basil
1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
2 tbsp olive oil
kosher salt and fresh pepper to taste
2 medium ripe tomatoes
3 oz part skim mozzarella, sliced into 6 slices
2 cups arugula

Directions:

In a small blender, combine basil, olive oil, balsamic, a pinch of salt and fresh cracked pepper. Blend until smooth.

Slice the the top and bottom off of the tomato, discard. Cut the tomato into 3 equal slices and season with a pinch of salt keeping the tomato intact to assemble the same way it was cut.

Place 3/4 cup of arugula on each plate. Create two towers by layering the tomato, mozzarella, arugula, until two towers have formed, one on each plate. Top tomatoes with the remaining arugula then top with fresh cracked pepper and drizzle with oil and vinegar.