Serves 4 as a main dish; 6 to 8 as a starter 20 minutes prep time 

Salad can be assembled 30 minutes ahead 

Garlic and pine nuts, currants and onion, take the ubiquitous tomato-mozzarella salad into new territory. Adapted from my second book, this salad might be The Splendid Table’s website’s most popular download. We had to include it here.

 For me, this dish is all Sicily, but not in the way you might think. It speaks of Sicily’s location ninety miles oM the coast of North Africa and of the island’s Arab occupation from the ninth to twelfth century. That era brought Arab cooks—along with scholars, artists, and politicians—to the island. So today this salad tastes more medieval and Arab than anything like modern Italy. This is pure Sicily, as typical as a view of Mount Etna. 

DRESSING 

3 tablespoons fresh lemon juice 

1 large garlic clove, minced 

⅛ teaspoon fresh-ground black pepper 

Generous pinch of red pepper flakes

 ⅓ medium red onion, cut into 

¼-inch dice 

3 tablespoons dried currants Salt 

2 tight-packed tablespoons fresh basil leaves, torn 

⅔ cup pine nuts, toasted 

⅔ cup pine nuts, toasted 

SALAD 

6 medium ripe tomatoes 1 pound fresh mozzarella packed in liquid, sliced ½ inch thick About 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil 

1. To make the dressing, in a small bowl, combine the lemon juice, garlic, black pepper, red pepper Aakes, onion, currants, and salt to taste. Let the mixture stand for 20 to 30 minutes. Just before assembling the dish, stir in the basil and all but ¼ cup of the pine nuts. 

2. Core the tomatoes. Check that each is stable when placed cored side down on a plate. (The idea behind this dish is that each tomato will be sliced horizontally and layered with cheese and seasonings so that it looks whole again on the plate. Keep each tomato’s slices in order for easy assembly.) 

3.Cut each tomato horizontally into ½-inch-thick slices. Place the bottom slice of each tomato on a serving platter. Season them with a little salt, then top each with a slice of cheese. Season the cheese with a teaspoon or so of the onion mixture. Continue the layers until all the tomatoes are reassembled. 

4. To >nish the dish, sprinkle the tomatoes with the reserved pine nuts, the olive oil, and any leftover onion mixture. Serve at room temperature