Hasselback Caprese Salad (Tomato, Mozzarella, & Basil)

Last Updated on April 6, 2023 by Kayla Berman

Hasselback Caprese Salad is an easy, delicious, and beautiful appetizer recipe! Made with Roma tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and balsamic glaze … this fun twist on the classic appetizer is fresh, flavorful, light, and tastes like it could be served at a restaurant. Everyone is sure to love this low effort dish!

Looking for more caprese recipes? Check out my Chicken Caprese Pasta, Pesto Orzo Caprese Salad, and Tortellini Caprese Salad. Or my Tomato Caprese with Fresh Burrata!

hasselback caprese salad

Fun & Unique Vegetable Side Dish Recipe

We’ve all enjoyed caprese salad in our lives! It is pretty much the quintessential Italian appetizer. It is on each and every menu.

And it is delicious! The perfect light bite to start any meal.

Hasselback Caprese Salad takes the traditional caprese salad up a notch with a fun twist … the hasselback technique!

This method of thinly slicing tomatoes and stuffing them with basil leaf wrapped mozzarella cheese is next level. Add some balsamic glaze and olive oil on top and you’ve got yourself a beautiful dish everyone will love.

This showstopper of an appetizer is super low effort, taking only 10 minutes to prepare … but no one would be able to tell. It is fresh, light, and delectably delicious!

hassleback style tomato caprese

Ingredients

The ingredient list on this simple appetizer is one of the shortest I’ve ever seen! You really don’t need much at all to deliver a show stopping dish.

Ingredient Notes

  • Tomatoes: This recipe calls for 5 Roma tomatoes! I think they are the perfect size and shape for the hasselback cutting.
  • Mozzarella Cheese: Fresh mozzarella cheese is probably the star of the show here. It is creamy, dreamy, and delicious. You’ll need 1 lb.
  • Fresh Basil: The addition of fresh basil leaves adds tons of flavor here. You cannot skip it! About 1 oz should do the trick.
  • Balsamic Glaze: I love balsamic glaze or balsamic reduction in a Caprese salad. So sweet, bold, and delicious! For this recipe you’ll drizzle however much you’d like.
  • Olive Oil: You’ll also drizzle extra-virgin olive oil to your liking. Use a high quality oil for the best results!
  • Salt & Pepper: Lastly, add salt and black pepper to taste.

Substitutions & Additions

This recipe is quite straightforward so there are not too many changes you could make! However, I have a few ideas for substitutions or additions you could make to it to meet your personal preferences, tastes, or needs.

Tomatoes: Can’t find Roma tomatoes? Any medium tomatoes should work.

Cheese: You most certainly can’t make this recipe without mozzarella cheese, but you can add more cheese to it. Perhaps a sprinkling of grated parmesan.

Balsamic: The balsamic glaze here can super easily be replaced with balsamic vinegar. You could even do a balsamic vinaigrette if you’d like.

Seasonings: Add Italian seasoning, dried parsley, or dried basil. Or red pepper flakes for some spice!

Extras: You could totally add some extra fillings to the tomatoes too. Like pesto or prosciutto!

caprese salad ingredients

Kitchen Tools

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tomato caprese salad

How To Make This Recipe

Hasselback tomato caprese salad is a super quick and easy recipe to make!

All you do is cut whole tomatoes using the hasselback technique, fill them with thin slices of mozzarella cheese, and add a balsamic drizzle. It is the perfect appetizer!

Especially if you’re short on time, but still want to wow everyone.

Step By Step Instructions

Step 1: First carefully slice the Roma tomatoes.  Place the tomatoes, with the flattest side down, on a cutting board. Make thin horizontal slices into the top of the tomato, but do not cut all the way through.  Cut each slice about 90% of the way through the tomato, leaving a bit in tact to keep the tomatoes together.

hasselback cut Roma tomatoes

Step 2: Next thinly slice the fresh mozzarella cheese. Make sure you have enough slices to fill all the cuts in the tomatoes.

Step 3: Wrap the mozzarella slices in a fresh basil and insert one slice into each cut in the tomatoes.

hasselback caprese tomato

Step 4: Drizzle the tomatoes with balsamic glaze and olive oil.  Season with salt and black pepper.

Step 5: Serve and enjoy!

hasselback tomato, mozzarella, and basil salad

Expert Tips

Cut carefully! Make sure you do not cut all the way through the tomatoes. Then you’d have a plain caprese salad, rather than a hasselback one.

Fresh mozzarella cheese! You must, must, must use fresh mozzarella.

Drizzle and season to your heart’s delight! I didn’t add measurements for the balsamic glaze, olive oil, salt, or pepper here because it is really up to you. Just do however much you think tastes good.

tomato, fresh mozzarella, and fresh basil topped with balsamic glaze

Frequently Asked Questions

What does caprese mean?

Caprese means “denoting a salad of fresh mozzarella, tomatoes, and basil.”

The salad is named after Capri, Italy where it is believed to have originated from.

What does hasselback mean?

Hasselbacking is a cooking method where ingredients are sliced not quite all the way through, typically about 75%, in thin slices. This is most commonly seen in hasselback potatoes!

It gives the food an interesting texture and more surface area for seasonings and flavors to stick to.

How to best serve this recipe?

This recipe can be served as either an appetizer or side salad!

For an appetizer, serve it alongside my Goat Cheese Bruschetta or Whipped Ricotta Crostini. This will keep the fresh Italian theme!

For a side dish, serve with a main dish like my Pesto Butter Salmon, Pan Seared Chicken Thighs, or Crusted Chicken Romano.

How to best store this recipe?

You can store this recipe in an airtight container in the refrigerator. It will keep best for 2-3 days!

hasselback caprese salad

Love this recipe? Check out some more delicious appetizer recipes below…

Connect With Me!

If you make this caprese salad recipe or any of my other recipes, I would absolutely love to know! Tag me @wellnessbykay on Instagram so I can see and share your recreations.

caprese salad

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Hasselback Caprese Salad (Tomato, Mozzarella, & Basil)

Hasselback Caprese Salad is an easy, delicious, and beautiful appetizer recipe! Made with Roma tomatoes, fresh mozzarella cheese, fresh basil, and balsamic glaze … this fun twist on the classic appetizer is fresh, flavorful, light, and tastes like it could be served at a restaurant. Everyone is sure to love this low effort dish!

  • Author: Kayla Berman
  • Prep Time: 15 Minutes
  • Total Time: 15 minutes
  • Yield: 8 Servings
  • Category: Appetizer / Side Dish
  • Method: No Cook
  • Cuisine: Italian

Ingredients

  • 5 roma tomatoes
  • 1 lb fresh mozzarella cheese
  • 1 oz fresh basil leaves
  • Balsamic glaze, drizzle
  • Extra virgin olive oil, drizzle
  • Salt, to taste
  • Black pepper, to taste

Instructions

  1. First carefully slice the Roma tomatoes.  Place the tomatoes, with the flattest side down, on a cutting board. Make thin horizontal slices into the top of the tomato, but do not cut all the way through.  Cut each slice about 90% of the way through the tomato, leaving a bit in tact to keep the tomatoes together. See the full blog post for a visual.
  2. Next thinly slice the fresh mozzarella cheese. Make sure you have enough slices to fill all the cuts in the tomatoes.
  3. Wrap the mozzarella slices in fresh basil and insert one slice into each cut in the tomatoes.
  4. Drizzle the tomatoes with balsamic glaze and olive oil.  Season with salt and black pepper.
  5. Serve and enjoy!

Keywords: hasselback caprese salad

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