This vegan caprese salad with hearts of palm is even better than your favorite tomato/mozzarella salad.

What’s better than fresh ripe tomatoes in the heart of tomato season? Not much that I can think of! And when you combine these luscious, ripe, juicy tomatoes with fragrant fresh basil… it’s just the perfect marriage of summer flavors. But, with this recipe, you end up with an even better version of this traditional dish because this recipe also includes some awesome vegan mozzarella cheese and sliced hearts of palm.

I know that when a lot of people see a Caprese salad on a menu, they get all kinds of happy inside. I’ve always stayed away from these salads because of my inability to eat cheese. I am so happy to have recently found some of the most awesome vegan cheeses, so I’ve been like a kid in a candy store and I’ve been ecstatic to re-create some old favorite dishes using these awesome cheeses.

It was about a billion degrees in Manhattan the other day. I was sitting in my air conditioned kitchen, hungrily browsing through some beautiful food blogs (I can literally spend hours and hours doing this…) I saw a great recipe for a tomato and hearts of palm salad from one of my favorite food bloggers at Foodie Crush. Such a simple, yet genius recipe, and her photos are so awesome, I just wanted to dive in. I was so inspired by that recipe, that I switched things up a bit and created this Vegan Caprese Salad With Hearts Of Palm. If you’ve been looking to try out some vegan cheeses, this salad is the perfect way to dive in!

If you want to try another great tomato salad, try my recipe for Tomato And Herb Salad With Roasted Lemons.

Here are some of the great healing reasons to make this salad:

In Chinese medicine, we use tomatoes to aid in digestion and to help detoxify the body. They are also good to combat excess cholesterol, lessen inflammation and curb asthma. Tomatoes can also quench thirst, and they can help fight some kidney infections.

The hearts of palm in this salad help create a great texture, offer extra vitamin B-6, and they also contain a good dose of potassium, fiber, and vitamin C.

Onions are great for your immune system; they are a natural antihistamine. Recently, I recommended that a patient with bronchitis put sliced raw onions in her socks when she went to sleep… she woke up so much better; they actually can rid the body of bacteria. (I know I’ve told you this before, but it really is awesome!) Onion is a superhero in the food world!

Basil has anti-viral and anti-bacterial capabilities. It also is good for settling your stomach, and it’s good at lessening the symptoms of the common cold and its accompanying cough. Basil is a spiritual herb — the scent actually calms you; you can boil some in a pot and let the aroma fill the air, you can just leave some around the house, you can toss a bunch in your bath water (I love to do this), or you can use an essential oil with basil to get some great calming effects.