Gluten-Free Caprese Tartlets

While the kids and I were at Costco the other day, we saw some fresh mozzarella which got me jonesing for Caprese salad.  This is NOT the time of year for that, I know, and I am all about eating seasonally and locally but I couldn't help myself.  I bought some tomatoes and the cheese and headed home with visions of Caprese tartlets dancing in my head.  I first saw Caprese tartlets on Melissa D'Arabian's show on the Food Network.  I happened to have some hemp bread in the freezer (which was not white bread but it worked) and some basil from my garden that I had frozen for just such an occasion.  I found that if you freeze fresh herbs from the garden, they may not look pretty but they retain their flavor.  There is just no comparison between fresh basil and dried.  They don't even taste like the same plant to me!  Anyways, here's the recipe with the slight variation for gluten-free.  This would make a great appetizer but we just ate it for dinner along with a salad.  Please excuse the presentation in my picture.  My 6 year old was waiting her for food so I was a bit rushed. 
Check out the original recipe and comments here:  http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/melissa-darabian/caprese-tartlets-recipe/index.html.

Gluten-Free Caprese Tartlets (Recipe Courtesy Melissa D'Arabian)  

Total Time: 23 min  Prep: 10 min  Cook: 13 min Yield: 4 servings (2 tartlets per serving)

Ingredients

• 8 slices gluten-free white bread (I used gf hemp bread)
• 1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 tablespoons cream cheese, softened
• 1 teaspoon garlic powder
• 1 teaspoon dried basil
• Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper
• 2 Roma tomatoes, thinly sliced
• 4 ounces fresh mozzarella (approximately 2-inch ball), thinly sliced
• Balsamic vinegar, for drizzling, optional
• 8 fresh basil leaves

Directions

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees F.

Using a biscuit or cookie cutter, cut out a piece of bread to fit in the bottom of the muffin tin.  Brush both sides of the bread with olive oil. Press the slices in the muffin tin, to form tartlet shells. Set aside.

In a small bowl, using a fork to combine, mix together the cream cheese, garlic powder, dried basil, salt, and pepper until smooth and creamy. Drop about a teaspoon of the cream cheese into the bottom of each muffin tin. Bake the tartlets until golden and crusty, 12 to 13 minutes.

Meanwhile, liberally salt the tomato slices. Once the tartlet shells are golden, remove them from the oven and transfer to a cooling rack. Place a slice of mozzarella on top of the cream cheese, then layer on a tomato slice or two. Season with salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste and a drizzle of olive oil and balsamic vinegar, if using. Garnish with basil.