Cheese

Felly's Favorite Panzanella with Burrata

by:
June 10, 2010
5
1 Ratings
Felly's Favorite Panzanella with Burrata
  • Serves 3-4
Author Notes

This is one of my husband's favorite salads. We've been making it at least twice a week for the past two months. We've been tinkering it with every time and I think we've finally nailed it. It is the perfect dish for these incredibly hot summer days we've been having - refreshing and flavorful. [PS - I forgot to take a picture after we added the burrata so the picture above is not quite complete] - melissav —melissav

Test Kitchen Notes

This recipe was very simple and easy to throw together. With two large English cucumbers, this was easily enough for 6-8 as a side dish/salad. The flavor in the dressing is robust and tangy. The burrata on top is like icing on a cake. The other really good thing about this recipe is that it offers the chef a number of opportunities to improvise to personal taste -- from the herb choices to adding other summer veggies, etc. The salad is substantial enough with the cheese that you could easily make it into an easy, fresh weeknight meal all summer long. I plan to do just that, over and over. - annalea
—The Editors

What You'll Need
Ingredients
  • Salad
  • 5 thick slices of stale baguette, cubed
  • 2 tablespoons olive oil
  • 1 garlic clove, crushed
  • 1/2 small red onion, sliced very thin
  • 1.5 pounds best quality tomatoes, a variety is good. I usually use a mix of roma, heirloom, and grape, chopped into large chunks
  • 2 cucumbers, peeled, sliced in half lengthwise, seeds scooped out with spoon, and sliced into half moons
  • 1 large handful of herbs, mix of basil, parsley, chives, mint, and tarragon or whatever you have handy, chopped
  • salt
  • 1 ball burrata
  • Dressing
  • 1 tablespoon whole grain dijon
  • 1 tablespoon capers, rough chop
  • 1 clove garlic, minced
  • 1/4 cup champagne vinegar
  • 1/4 cup red wine vinegar
  • 1/4 cup olive oil
  • 2 big pinches of salt
  • 1 big pinch pepper
Directions
  1. Salad
  2. Heat the olive oil over medium low heat with the crushed garlic clove and add the bread cubes. Sprinkle with a little salt and saute until golden. You want them nice and toasty and golden and very hard. Once done, scrap into a large bowl and discard the garlic.
  3. Add the red onions, tomato, cucumbers, and herbs.
  4. Add the dressing (recipe below), starting with 1/4 cup. Toss. Add more dressing by the tablespoon until adequately dressed. I usually only need to add one or more spoonfuls after the 1/4 cup. Season to taste with salt.
  5. Let the salad sit for 10 minutes to allow the bread cubes to drink up the dressing and so the flavors have a chance to meld.
  6. Plate each salad. Gently tear or cut the burrata into large chunks and top each salad with a few chunks.
  7. Grab a seat on your patio and dig in!
  1. Dressing
  2. Place all the ingredients in a jar and shake vigorously.
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See what other Food52ers are saying.

  • kmartinelli
    kmartinelli
  • annalea
    annalea
  • fiveandspice
    fiveandspice
  • TheWimpyVegetarian
    TheWimpyVegetarian
  • AntoniaJames
    AntoniaJames

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5 Reviews

kmartinelli
kmartinelli June 29, 2011
I looovvvvee burrata! And I love panzanella! So this is just perfect.
 
annalea
annalea June 20, 2010
I tested this recipe for this week's Editors' Picks.

This recipe was very simple and easy to throw together. It isn't quite tomato season in northern California yet, so unfortunately I don't think that I could fully appreciate the flavors. I think the serving size is a little off. I used two large English cucumbers and ended up with a huge bowl. Easily enough for 6-8 as a side dish/salad. The flavor in the dressing is robust and tangy. The burrata on top is like icing on a cake. The other really good thing about this recipe is that it offers the chef a number of opportunities to improvise to personal taste. From the herb choices to adding other summer veggies, etc. The salad is substantial enough with the cheese, you could easily make it into an easy, fresh weeknight meal all summer long. I plan to do just that over and over.
 
fiveandspice
fiveandspice June 18, 2010
Oh gosh, I love panzanella! I wanted to test this for the editor's picks and just missed getting it, but I'll definitely be trying it anyway!
 
TheWimpyVegetarian
TheWimpyVegetarian June 14, 2010
LOVE IT!!! Perfect for summer!
 
AntoniaJames
AntoniaJames June 11, 2010
Mmm, yum. So appealing. That photo is gorgeous, too . . . even without the burratta. ;o)