Caprese Spasso

This is a circa 1997 recipe from the Grand Hyatt's Spasso restaurant in Bangkok. I'm pretty sure it was still on the menu some years later. The thing that makes this a special caprese is the oven-dried tomatoes, red onions and the generous amounts of black pepper.

sweet cherry tomatoes (or any sweet tomato)

red onions

buffalo mozzarella

basil leaves

EVOO

best quality aged balsamic

maldon sea salt

fresh ground black pepper

1. cut tomatoes in half; place in oven for 6 hours at lowest temperature possible
2. slice onions super thin with a mandolin, place on a paper towel and let dry a couple hours
3. assemble: in separate bowl dress tomatoes and onions with EVOO, vinegar, S&P and scatter on platter; rip up cheese and scatter on top of other ingredients along with basil; add lots of pepper