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Jacked Up Organic Caprese Salad with Organic Greek Red Wine Vinaigrette is more than just tomato, mozzarella, basil, and a balsamic reduction. Kicked up a notch with thinly sliced red onion and crazy good Copycat Bluebird Deep Fried Croutons, this “tomato salad” is addictive. 😊 Sometimes I dress it with balsamic vinaigrette, sometimes a Greek red wine dressing. No matter what, it’s a refreshing side when fresh, organic tomatoes 🍅 come on. I do wish our Florida soil could produce the insanely delicious tomatoes grown in Indiana. Wish I could have three triaxle loads of Indiana soil brought down! 🚛😜

Dastardly Lectins Lurking in Our Food

Lectins are proteins that bind to carbohydrates. Some plants use these lectins for protection against invaders. Some doctors with ads all over social media are freaking people out over eating foods that contain what they call gut microbiome destroyers and are telling you not to eat those foods at all. That’s just crazy talk. 😳 Even though research suggests lectins are one of the villains in the leaky gut story, that doesn’t mean you can’t eat the foods that contain them.

Here’s the thing, research is pointing to leaky gut as being a cause of important good gut bacteria dying off. Lectins and glyphosate (a chemical sprayed on crops) seem to be culprits in the reduced natural production of Glucagon-like peptide-1 (GLP-1). Ozempic/Wegovy/semaglutide are all the weight-loss rage these days because we aren’t producing GLP-1 like we used to. Rather than taking a risky drug with some eye-popping side-effects, remove as many lectins as possible from your foods and eat as much organically grown as you can find. Here are other important considerations on how to live organically.

How to Remove Lectins

Nightshade plants like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant contain lectins. We love raw tomatoes and they’re loaded. I’m not a fan of raw peppers of any sort, but lots of people are. So the best way to minimize lectin consumption that may cause unwanted gut reactions is to remove as much of the lectins as possible. This is easily done by removing the skins and seeds. These lectins are also found in the skins of beans, the hulls of whole grains, and legumes (like peanuts). Soaking and cooking those greatly reduces the lectins in those foods. Roast the peanuts and let the heat destroy the bulk of the lectins. Roast peppers and place in a glass or stainless steel container and put a lid on to let the steam separate the skin from the pulp.

How to Easily Remove Tomato Skins

Now some fruits stubbornly hang onto their skins like tomatoes. The easiest way to peel them:

• Core the tomatoes then cut a little X in the opposite end
• Plunge them one at a time into boiling water for 30-40 seconds
• Plunge into ice water for a several seconds
• Peel with a small paring knife or use your fingers
• Remove the seeds by breaking open the tomato chambers and scraping out

When I want to preserve whole tomatoes for canning, I set up my assembly line and just remove the peels and not worry about the seeds. Those tomatoes will be cooked in the water bath canner, thereby destroying the lectins. If I want to make juice or sauce, I use a food mill that separates the seeds and skin from the pulp without the hot and cold water treatment. Though those will also go through the cooking process while canning.

For this salad, I removed the skins and most of the seeds since I knew I would be eating lots of tomatoes. 😋

About the Organic Ingredients for Jacked Up Organic Caprese Salad

If you can’t get organic tomatoes at your local farmers market, and the organic tomatoes at your favorite grocery store look less than fresh, the heirloom tomatoes are the next best thing. The addition of thinly sliced red onion takes this salad into a whole new dimension!

I can’t always find an organic red onion. Substitute whatever organic onion you can find. It’ll taste just as fantastic. The reason for red it mostly for appearance. We first feast with our eyes. 👀

Moreover, I haven’t found any organic cheeses at my local stores so I look for the least amount of ingredients, and made with milk from cows not treated with bovine growth hormone (rBST). If you can find raw milk and make your own mozzarella, do it! I’m looking for a local dairy that sells at surrounding farmers markets so I can give homemade a try.

Do choose, whole milk mozzarella. Do NOT use part skim, low fat cheese! There is a huge difference in taste and science proves that fat does NOT cause clogged arteries. And fat does NOT make you fat. Using the freshest, organic ingredients is the optimal way to feed your body what it needs without the toxic chemicals and glyphosate. Your gut microbiome will thank you! 🦠

Top this salad with fabulous, easy to make organic croutons made from organic bread. Dave’s Killer Bread is one of my favorites, but Jimmie doesn’t like it for his sandwiches. 🥪 He does love my homemade breads though. 🍞 The Dave’s Killer Organic Buns are fantastic!

I love caprese salad, especially from BJ’s Brewhouse, but the amount served is always stingy and costs too much. This recipe makes enough for potlucks, picnics, and taking in your lunches for a refreshing change of pace!

Happy eating! 😋

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