Mozzarella Balls Anyone??

So, there's that famous phrase "you learn something new everyday" and with cooking, I feel like you really do!!

Yesterday's dinner was a nice big salad from the salad bar at the grocery store I work at. Being a cashier, I see all kinds of ingredients and foods go through my lines and some of them I've never eaten or even seen before. One of them in particular has been catching my attention repeatedly....Mozzarella Balls. I do not know if that is what you even call them, but thats what I wanna call em!

In my salad last night, I decided to try some. They were a new item at the salad bar, which explains the popularity. Perhaps others like me, decided to give em a shot for the first time too! Or maybe they already know they like them and were excited to see them at the salad bar? Anyways, When I ate my first mozzarella ball...it tasted...bland to me at first, then I got the cheesy kind of aftertaste. They're good, but are better paired with other things. I kept dipping mine in my raspberry vinaigrette dressing and they were great with that. I wondered though, how else do people eat these?? What are they used for? So today I looked that up and found some interesting ideas...

One idea I really liked was Fried Mozzarella Balls. Those look SO good. Just like the mozzarella sticks you order at restaurants!! You can make them at home! How great is that?! Mmmm! Of course you gotta make the marinara sauce to go with them too!!

Another idea which seems to be popular, is pairing them with tomatoes, basil, and dressing. Here is one that features cilantro instead of basil ---->> Grape tomato and Mozzarella Balls!! I see recipes like this all the time and have always wondered what it tastes like!

These cheesy balls come in different sizes too. You can buy em large, medium, mini...whichever you prefer. Some people buy the larger ones, slice em up and layer them with tomatoes and herbs and olive oil for a nice tomato mozzarella sandwich. If it were mine, I might even add some sliced black olives...Love those!! Some people slice up the smaller ones and put them ontop of pizzas! Yum!! Many of you may have also seen them as an ingredient in antipasto salads, green salads, pasta dishes...they are surprisingly very popular. I just never really noticed or thought about what they were!!

See?? I learned all that today and tried something new in my salad last night. The best thing about cooking, is that it never gets dull or boring because even when you think you know it all, you learn something new. Whether it be from a book, online or a tip from a friend!! I love that about cooking!! : )

How would you enjoy your mozzarella balls??

Happy Cooking!!

*photos from google images, recipes are not my own!*