This dish is so simply prepared, yet yields amazingly complex flavours. Sandy was inspired to make these tasty stacks from ingredients that seemed always to be on hand in her and Michael’s home. Because there are so few ingredients in this dish, it is imperative that your ingredients are quality. We also recommend that you take the time to make your bread crumbs from scratch, as it adds that extra something to the dish. And don’t worry about any extra bread crumbs getting stale; just store them in the freezer and they will stay fresh for months. If you find yourself with extra basil, don’t waste it! Use it to make some tasty pesto.

Ingredients

• Cooking spray

• 3 medium tomatoes, cut into 1/4-inch-thick slices

• Salt and freshly ground black pepper

• 8 1/4-inch-thick slices fresh mozzarella

• 1 tablespoon chopped fresh basil

• 1/3 cup seasoned bread crumbs

• 2 teaspoons unsalted butter, melted

Directions
1 Preheat the oven to 425°F. Coat a 9 x 13-inch casserole dish with cooking spray.

2 Arrange one layer of tomatoes (do not overlap) in the bottom of the casserole dish. Season the tomatoes with salt and pepper. Put a slice of fresh mozzarella on top of each tomato, then top each with basil. Top each stack with another slice of tomato, and season with salt and pepper.

3 Combine the bread crumbs and butter in a small bowl. Sprinkle the crumbs over the stacks.

4 Bake for 5 to 10 minutes or until the tomatoes are heated through, the bread crumbs are lightly browned, and the mozzarella just starts to melt. Serve hot.

Makes 8 servings.

Bread is too good of a thing to let go to waste. How many times does your uneaten bread go to the birds? If for some insane reason you didn't eat the entire baguette for dinner, use the leftovers to make some delicious bread crumbs, which are always handy for adding texture to casseroles. Bread crumbs can go stale quickly, so keep them fresh longer by storing in the freezer.

Ingredients

• 1 loaf day-old bread

• 2 tablespoons dried thyme or oregano

• 2 tablespoons dried basil or parsley

• 1 teaspoon garlic powder

• 2 teaspoons salt

• ½  teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

Directions
1 Preheat the oven to 300°F.

2 Cut the bread into 1-inch cubes and pulse in a food processor to make coarse crumbs. Spread the crumbs on a baking sheet and dry them out by baking for 10 to 15 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes. Allow the crumbs to
cool completely.

3 Return the dried crumbs to the food processor. Add the thyme, basil, garlic powder, salt, and pepper, then pulse until the crumbs are finely processed and well mixed with the seasoning.

4 Store in an airtight container for up to six months.

Makes 3 cups.

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Excerpted from The Casserole Queens Cookbook by Crystal Cook and Sandy Pollock Copyright © 2011 by Crystal Cook and Sandy Pollock . Excerpted by permission of Clarkson Potter, a division of Random House of Canada Limited. All rights reserved. No part of this excerpt may be reproduced or reprinted without permission in writing from the publisher.