Eat your Veggies! Try these Caprese stuffed tomatoes!

It's that time of the year when vacation time has to be used at work, otherwise, I will lose it. Some of these days will be used for some fun traveling to visit family but there are other days when I have nothing planned. Last Friday was one of those days so I decided to challenge myself and make the hubby a fancy meal. When I mentioned it to him, he stated that he wanted a caprese salad incorporated in this meal somehow so..... I decided to embellish a "Taste of Home" stuffed tomato recipe to have caprese flavors. I never imagined how delicious it would turn out. Not only is it different but I am positive it will be a huge hit with your family or friends.

Ingredients:
3 medium tomatoes (Hot house or "on the vine" tomatoes would work best since they sit flat)
6 mini fresh mozzerella balls or 3 regular size fresh mozzerella balls non seasoned (you can find these in the specialty cheese case. They will be in a tub of water)
Fresh Basil (You will probably need about 5-8 leaves depending on your taste for basil)
Balsamic vinegar or glaze
Shredded Mozzarella cheese for topping

Stuffing ingredients:
1 cup garlic/cheese croutons, crushed
2 tbsp grated parmesan cheese
2 tbsp shredded Mozzarella cheese
4 tbsp melted butter
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp freshly ground pepper

Directions:
1. Preheat oven to 350 degrees
2. Cut a thin slice off the top of each tomato. Scoop out the pulp, leaving a 1/2 in. shell. Invert onto paper towels to drain.
3. Mix stuffing ingredients
4. Flip tomatoes over and place two mini mozzerella balls in each. Then place a basil leave (or part of a leaf) on top of mozzerella. Drizzle with a small amount of balsamic. At this point, your tomatoes should look like the picture to the right (one is already filled with the stuffing)
5. Spoon stuffing mixture into each tomato.
6. Place tomatoes into a baking dish, cover tops of tomatoes with aluminum foil to prevent over-browning of stuffing.
7. Bake at 350 degrees for 25 minutes
8. Remove from oven, remove foil, and sprinkle evenly with shredded mozzerella cheese. Then place a small basil leaf on top for aesthetics
9. Place tomatoes back in oven for another 5 minutes to melt the cheese
Enjoy!