Scrumptious Saturday ~ Marinated Mozzarella

I found the following recipe for marinated mozzarella and had to give it a try.  I made the marinated portion in a larger batch, packed the cubes of mozzarella in pint jars, and poured the marinade over the cheese in the jars.  I did put these jars in the refrigerator which caused the olive oil to become thick and cloudy.  I simply take a jar out and let it sit at room temp for a while before serving, allowing the olive oil to become clear again.  The only thing I did differently from the recipe below is that I used peppercorns instead of ground pepper and I used our own dehydrated tomatoes from this summer's garden in lieu of the sun dried tomatoes. 

So as to not waste the delicious, Italian seasoned olive oil, I simply drained the mozzarella through a strainer before serving (this also eliminated the peppercorns) and saved the oil.  I can use this oil in which to dip bread, or add some to vinegar for a nice Italian dressing. 

Prep Time: 20 minutes


Chill: 8 hours

Yield: Makes about 4 cups

Ingredients

3 (8-oz.) blocks mozzarella cheese

1 (8.5-oz.) jar sun-dried tomatoes, drained and halved

1/2 cup olive oil

3 tablespoons finely chopped fresh flat-leaf parsley

1 teaspoon garlic powder

1 teaspoon onion powder

1/2 teaspoon dried oregano

1/2 teaspoon Italian seasoning

1/4 teaspoon salt

1/4 teaspoon freshly ground pepper

Garnish: flat-leaf parsley sprigs or fresh rosemary stems

Preparation

1. Cut blocks of cheese into 1-inch cubes. Arrange cheese cubes and tomato halves in an 8-inch square baking dish.



2. Whisk together 1/2 cup olive oil, chopped parsley, and next 6 ingredients; pour evenly over cheese cubes. Cover and chill at least 8 hours or up to 24 hours. Transfer mixture to a serving plate. Garnish with fresh flat-leaf parsley sprigs, or spear tomato halves and cheese cubes with short rosemary stems, if desired. Drizzle with marinade, if desired.

Southern Living, OCTOBER 2007