Fried Tomatillo Caprese Stacks - cooking recipe

Ingredients

Fried Tomatillos
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
Salad Fixings
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

Preparation

Fried Tomatillos:
In a large bowl, combine the cornmeal, flour, garlic powder, and cayenne together.
Pour the buttermilk into a separate bowl and season with salt and pepper.
Dip the tomatoes in the buttermilk and then dredge them in the cornmeal mixture, coating both sides well.
Place a large cast iron skillet over medium heat and coat with the oil.
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.
Carefully remove the tomatoes and drain on paper towels.
Create the Salad Stacks:
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.
Slice your cherry tomatoes into quarters.
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.
Top each stack with cherry tomatoes, basil and balsamic glaze. Serve while warm.