Burrata Strawberry and Watermelon Salad

Burrata. I thought I’d never get my hands on it! The lovely people in Iago got some in and kindly let me know. I love my cheese but my level of excitement was bordering on pathetic. I was dying to experiment and this Burrata Strawberry and Watermelon Salad was born.

I first tasted burrata on holidays in Ibiza a couple of years ago. I had an amazing Tomato and Burrata salad with balsamic at a beach club. I still dream of that meal. Burrata is a fresh Italian cheese made from mozzarella with a cream filling. Not at all healthy but utterly delicious. If you can’t get it, a good quality mozzarella will be the perfect substitute.

As it will still be a while until tomatoes are at their best, I went with this combination instead. As with this Watermelon and Feta Salad I like to grill the watermelon. It concentrates the flavour and brings out the sweetness of the fruit.

As the salad is so simple and involves little or no cooking, you need to make sure all of the ingredients you use are of the highest possible quality. Feel free to play around with different touches such as adding mint or using chopped walnuts instead of pine nuts. If you don’t have the balsamic glaze, use the vinegar and some sugar to make your own.

Serves 2

Ingredients:

• 1 x 300g ball of burrata or mozzarella cheese
• 200g of strawberries
• 200g of watermelon flesh
• A handful of watercress or other leaves
• Approx 10 basil leaves
• 1 tbsp. of pine nuts
• 1 tbsp. of balsamic glaze
• ½ tbsp. of extra virgin olive oil
• Salt and pepper

Method:

• Firstly make sure to have your ingredients at room temperature. Wash and hull the strawberries and cut them into quarters.
• You can simply chop your fresh watermelon if you like but as I said above I like to grill it. You can do this on a griddle pan or on a barbecue. Preheat either to a high heat. I cut the watermelon into wedges and leave the rind on to hold it together while cooking. Brush with a little oil and grill for a few minutes on either side until you have some nicely caramelised grill marks. Remove from the heat and cut off the rind and dice the flesh into cubes.
• Arrange your salad leaves on to a plate and place the burrata on top. Surround the cheese with the strawberries and watermelon. Tear the basil leaves and scatter them on top.
• When you are ready to serve, toast the pine nuts in a dry non stick pan for a few minutes until they have turned a golden brown. In a bowl whisk together the olive oil, balsamic glaze and a nice bit of salt and pepper.
• Tear open the burrata to allow the creamy filling to pour out. Yes it’s a mess but it’s a beautiful mess! If using mozzarella tear it open in the same way.
• Scatter over the toasted pine nuts and pour over the dressing. Enjoy.

 

If you have leftover watermelon, have a look here on ways to use it up.

For a healthier alternative, have a look at Mira’s salad here.