Ingredients

• 1 cup stone-ground cornmeal
• 1 cup all-purpose flour
• 1 tablespoon garlic powder
• 1 pinch cayenne
• 1 1/2 cups buttermilk
• kosher salt
• fresh ground black pepper
• 4 large tomatillos, cut into 1/2 inch thick slices, ends removed
• 1/2 cup vegetable oil
• 1 tablespoon unsalted butter
• 8 ounces mozzarella cheese
• 1 cup basil leaves, washed and stems removed
• 1/4 cup balsamic glaze (you can use store bought)
• 5 cherry tomatoes

Instructions

1. Fried Tomatillos:.

2. In a large bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, garlic powder, and cayenne together.

3. Pour the buttermilk into a separate bowl and season with salt and pepper.

4. Dip the tomatoes in the buttermilk and then dredge them in the cornmeal mixture, coating both sides well.

5. Place a large cast iron skillet over medium heat and coat with the oil.

6. When the oil is hot, pan-fry the tomatoes (in batches if necessary) until golden brown and crispy on both sides, about 3 to 4 minutes on each side.

7. Carefully remove the tomatoes and drain on paper towels.

8. Create the Salad Stacks:.

9. Cut mozzarella into slices (the same thickness as your tomatillos, about 1/2 an inch). Then, using a round biscuit cutter, trim the edges of the cheese to make perfect disks.

10. Slice your cherry tomatoes into quarters.

11. Start your salad stacks (you'll need 3 slices of fried tomatillos and 2 slices of cheese for each stack). Layer in the following order: tomatillos, mozzarella, basil, tomatillo, mozzarella, basil, tomatillo. Repeat until you've used all your tomatillos and cheese.

12. Top each stack with cherry tomatoes, basil and balsamic glaze. Serve while warm.