My husband is a caprese salad junkie, if that’s a thing. Any time there’s a caprese salad (or an insalata caprese as it’s actually called) on a menu, he orders it. There’s just something about the combination of the flavors that he loves. He’s not the only one. There’s a reason this combination is such a popular choice during summer months where you can find fresh grape tomatoes and basil growing like crazy. I’ve always loved the salad as well, especially when it’s drizzled with a balsamic glaze or balsamic reduction (kind of like we put on our grilled eggplant rolls), but it’s a hard to serve our favorite caprese salad at a party. These caprese kabobs turn classic caprese salad into a great appetizer because putting them on skewers makes them great for individuals to grab on their own without having to deal with all the stacking and cutting that typically happens with a traditional caprese salad. Plus, they’re so easy to make, you’ll want to enjoy them throughout peak tomato season! It’s a great way to enjoy some veggies and fresh ingredients without a lot of time to make them.
Why You’ll Love This Recipe
Few ingredients – you’ll need just a handful of ingredients to make these, and you can get them all easily at your local grocery store. Plus, putting them together is a cinch! Easy to make – like I mentioned, these are super easy to make, especially if you get the little marinated mozzarella balls instead of a large ball of fresh mozzarella. Then you don’t even have to cut the cheese! Fun appetizer – unlike a traditional salad, even if it’s something unique like this Mexican street corn pasta salad, these just look fun all skewered on the bamboo skewer like they are. It’s fun for plating and fun for eating!
Ingredients
Ingredient Notes
Mozzarella cheese ball – I recommend getting the marinated kind to give these a bit more flavor, but you can just do the regular ones as well. Make sure to get the small mozzarella balls or if you’re doing mini caprese skewers, go with the mini mozzarella balls, to make these as easy as possible! Oh and if it wasn’t already obvious, make sure to use fresh mozzarella balls. Cherry tomatoes – while I used cherry tomatoes for these, you could also use juicy cherry tomatoes or grape tomatoes. You just want some sort of fresh tomatoes that will fit onto the skewer. If you’re doing mini skewers, I recommend using grape tomatoes. They’ll give you a tasty bite of tomato without being overpowering with too much. Basil – I recommend using either regular basil or sweet basil if you want just a slightly different flavor. Oh and always use fresh basil leaves, these obviously don’t work with dried. Balsamic glaze – you have a number of options here. You can either buy store-bought balsamic glaze or use the homemade balsamic glaze recipe that’s in the recipe card with the full recipe at the bottom of this post. If you don’t like balsamic, you can also do a drizzle of olive oil as well, it’s just going to be the best flavor.
You’ll also need salt, black pepper, and of course bamboo skewers to make your caprese appetizer complete!
How Do You Make Caprese Salad Kabobs
Make these super easy appetizers by sliding a cherry tomato to about an inch from the bottom of the skewer, making sure you leave just enough skewer showing at the bottom to make them easy to pick up. Then slide a basil leaf on top of the tomato. Do your best to make sure the basil leaf doesn’t rip so slide and skewer carefully for the best result. If you rip the basil leaf, you can always just try to poke it through again in a different place or replace it completely. Next, add a mozzarella ball behind the basil. Repeat with one more of each item until you have full skewers. If you’re using longer wooden skewers, you could do a third set of ingredients, but that may be a little much for one person, so I recommend the smaller size. Once all the little caprese salad skewers are complete, sprinkle them with salt and pepper then drizzle with balsamic glaze. I recommend doing a light drizzle of balsamic glaze and having additional glaze available near where you’re serving these so people can add more as they want. Balsamic is a pretty strong flavor so a little goes a long way. But it does create that perfect bite of the classic flavors people love with caprese salad. Stack the skewers on top of each other carefully on a plate or a platter and serve chilled. If you’re not serving immediately, I recommend storing these caprese bites in the fridge until you’re ready to serve.
What to Eat with Caprese Salad
Caprese salad is a very versatile dish and can be enjoyed with any number of main dishes and other sides. It has a very fresh flavor, so it really could go with anything Italian or even Mediterranean. It would be great served with any of these main dishes.
Instant Pot fettuccine alfredoSweet spaghetti sauceQuick breadsticks
If you’re serving this at a party, it would be great served as part of a light lunch or as a simple salad alternative for something like a pasta bar or on a soup and salad bar.
Expert Tips
Make sure to use actual balsamic glaze (aka balsamic reduction) and not just balsamic vinegar so that that glaze will adhere to the skewers better. Regular balsamic vinegar is thinner and tends to just run right off. Store covered in plastic wrap until ready to serve. Return any uneaten skewers to the fridge and rewrap with plastic wrap until ready to enjoy again. Enjoy within three days. These are good for up to three days in the fridge as is but I would recommend enjoying them within that timeframe for the best taste.
More Easy Appetizers
If you’re looking for some more of our favorite appetizers, make sure to try out these simple appetizers!
Bacon wrapped smokies – these delicious bacon wrapped smokies have just a touch of sweetness and a touch of heat! Pizza roll appetizers – the easiest pizza rollup recipe that just needs a few simple ingredients to make! Bisquick sausage balls recipe – the easiest sausage balls that start out with Bisquick! Sticky chicken wings – super simple sticky chicken wings that have an amazing Asian inspired flavor! Baby brie bites – delicious brie bites baked into a flaky crescent roll and topped with a sweet and salty flavor!
