Stuffed Baked Balsamic Mozzarella Tomatoes - cooking recipe

Ingredients

4 tomatoes, large ripe beefsteak
8 ounces mozzarella cheese (1 fresh mozarella ball, about 12 slices)
1 cup balsamic vinaigrette (home made or store bought)
1/2 cup dried breadcrumbs
1/2 cup parmesan cheese, grated
1 tablespoon kosher salt
1 teaspoon ground black pepper
3 tablespoons fresh basil, chopped fine (optional)

Preparation

Marinade -- Slice the mozarella into 12 slices and place in almost all the vinaigrette, just save a little (1/4 cup) for a drizzle on top of the tomatoes. Turn them over and coat well, cover with plastic wrap and let marinade at room temp for 1 hour.
Tomatoes -- For the tomatoes, cut the stem area out and then make 3 cuts, top to bottom, but not all the way through just so you can stuff the cheese slices into the cuts of the tomato. Salt and pepper the tomato well including in the cut areas.
Topping -- Mix the bread crumbs and parmesan with a little of the balsamic vinaigrette (just a tablespoon) to make a nice crumb topping.
Putting the tomatoes together. Stuff the each of the tomato cuts with a slice of the mozarella 3 per tomato, then drizzle the remaining vinaigrette over the tomato. Top with the bread crumb mixture and either grill for about 15 minutes or bake on a cookie sheet lined with foil for about 20-25 minutes until the cheese is melted and the bread crumbs are golden brown.