[rustic fried mozzarella] most often, my favorite dishes (or the most requested by others) are a result of experiencing a dish i love somewhere else and deciding to challenge myself to create my own version - exactly the case with rustic fried mozzarella - the inspiration, fried mozzarella appetizer at maggiano’s (and macaroni grill) - the original is breaded mozzarella with marinara sauce, i started initially to copycat the dish and actually ended up recreating the dish...

Round 1) while attempting to bread the slices of fresh mozzarella, i ran into a problem, the fresher the mozzarella, the wetter the mozzarella...mine was very fresh! - trying to get the bread crumbs to stick did not go well and the pan was already hot - so in the end, i decided to just roll with the punches and put all the ingredients in the NON-STICK pan and test my luck - it worked! not perfectly, but i was not disappointed

Round 2) exchanging bread crumbs for croutons, i was hoping to make the dish more crunchy, and while i was at it, added a few more things to make it unforgettable - now i’m truly happy with the results and happy to share the basic recipe (or as close to a recipe as i get...)

in a non-stick pan, saute croutons in olive oil and roasted garlic paste until crispy brown - add fresh mozzarella and basil (cover pan with lid to help the cheese melt into the croutons - in large sections, flip cheese/croutons only once and allow cheese to brown (do not cover after flipping) - serve with marinara sauce (i use jar sauce, or diced tomatoes that i season with: seasoning trio, 2tbsp sugar, roasted garlic paste, cayenne pepper, and basil) 

crunchy, cheesy, spicy, deliciousness...enjoy!

because it matters,

jayne