Heirloom Tomato Salad with Garlic Croutons

 

1½ to 2 pounds of heirloom tomatoes
10 tablespoons olive oil
2 tablespoons red wine vinegar - best-quality
2 - 3 tablespoons fresh basil leaves
Salt to taste
Fresh ground black pepper to taste
1½ cups sliced baguette, coarsely cut into bite-size squares
4 plump cloves garlic, coarsely chopped

   1. Core and coarsely chop tomatoes.

   2. In small bowl, mix 4 tablespoons of the olive oil and vinegar.

   3. Gently stir oil/vinegar mixture into tomatoes

   4. Season with sea salt and pepper

   5. Stir in basil leaves

 

Cover and let stand at room temperature for 30 minutes

Garlic Croutons 

1.    In a heavy-bottomed skillet, heat 6 tablespoons of the oil over medium heat

2.    Add garlic and saute for 1 to 2 minutes

3.    Add bread, turning so all sides are coated in oil

4.    Remove pan from burner when the bread has absorbed all of the oil and is semi-crunchy

5.  Season with salt to taste

Serve tomatoes at room temperature topped with warm croutons

This recipe can be ad-libbed too; a few sprigs of fresh thyme may be substituted for the basil, you could add thinly sliced red onions, etc.  Thanks to Sherry Vinson for sharing this with me!