Caprese means from capri, the storied island off the western coast of italy belonging to the region of campania. Traditional insalata caprese contains only raw tomatoes, fresh mozzarella, sweet basil, extra virgin olive oil and a sprinkle of good sea salt. Many variations on the internet contain vinegar, but this is blasphemous, as the strong acidity will overpower the tang of the tomatoes and the subtle flavors of the fresh cheese. Anyway, turning the salad into a hot sandwich is heretical enough without fundamentally altering the source material. This recipe is an attempt at a faithful translation. On the other hand, we dont want to tell anyone what to do. If you want to use pesto, dried or cooked tomatoes, or even the blasphemous vinegar, have at it. But first try to get the basic elements in balance. Though you could use cooked or dried tomatoes, we like to leave them raw. Stray too far into cooked territory and you lose the character of a caprese, flirting instead with a sort of french bread pizza or calzone. Raw tomato, however, contains a lot of liquid that can threaten the toastiness of your sandwich. In order to keep the bread from getting soggy, slice the tomato thinly, and fry the bread in perhaps a bit more olive oil than you might normally use for a regular grilled cheese. The one major innovation here is to fry the basil. Flash fried herbs are fun and pretty, whereas warmed fresh basil turns brown. Just make sure the oil isn't too hot. This sandwich is vegetarian friendly and perfect for a quick light lunch, dinner, or even cut up in smaller pieces for a canap.
