Burrata with Pesto and Tomatoes
My burrata with pesto and tomatoes is an easy recipe that delivers rich and creamy flavor. It serves burrata with lemon zest on a bed of juicy cherry tomatoes coated in lemon juice, homemade pesto, and more fresh basil.
Serve it with crusty grilled bread and make it your centerpiece appetizer for a fancy dinner party or when you have friends over for the evening.
Ingredients
To make my burrata with pesto and tomatoes, you’ll need the following:
- Cherry Tomatoes – 3 cups (about 1lb or 450 grams) of cherry tomatoes (or baby tomatoes)
- Burrata – 1 burrata (minimum 8 oz/225 grams)
- Pesto – 1/3 cup fresh homemade pesto
- Lemon – lemon zest from one lemon and lemon juice of half a lemon (about 2 tbsp lemon juice)
- Salt – 1/2 tsp flaky sea salt (or more to taste)
- Olive Oil – 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- Baguette – 1 baguette to make crostini (to serve with the burrata)
- Optional garnishing: extra-virgin olive oil, Maldon sea salt flakes, and more fresh basil
As you can see, this recipe is inspired by the flavors of the Italian Caprese salad (which has tomatoes, fresh basil, and mozzarella). Instead of fresh tomatoes, I’m using roasted/charred tomatoes. Instead of just basil, we’re upgrading the flavor to fresh basil pesto! And we’re upgrading the mozzarella to burrata! We’re enhancing everything with lemon juice, lemon zest, and flaky sea salt and serving everything with crostinis!
Step-by-Step Instructions
Step 1 – Make the crostini. Cut the baguette into 1/2-inch slices and then brush each slice on both sides with some olive oil. Grill the bread on a grill, grill pan, or electric grill for a couple of minutes on each side. Alternatively, you could bake the bread slices at 360°F (180°C) for about 10-12 minutes in the oven.
Step 2 – To a pan, over medium-high heat, add 1 tbsp of olive oil and the cherry tomatoes. Pan fry for about 8-10 minutes until a bit charred on the outside and a bit soft on the inside (with some of the juices coming out). Alternatively, you could roast them in the oven at 390°F (200°C) for about 10 minutes.
Step 3 – Add the zest and juice of half a lemon (about 2 tbsp of fresh lemon juice) to the charred tomatoes.
Step 4 – Transfer the tomatoes to a serving plate (with all the juices) and then drizzle the fresh pesto over them.
Step 5 – Place the burrata over the tomatoes. Add the remaining lemon zest from the second half of the lemon.
Step 6 – Sprinkle some flaky sea salt (like Maldon) and, optionally, drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil on top.
Now for the fun part. Cut open the burrata, and let that creamy cheese mix with the juices of the tomatoes and the pesto. Mop this up with bread for a mouthful of utter Mediterrenean magic!
What to Serve it With
Ideal as an appetizer, why not have a look at some of my crostini recipes? You could put together a few different options for your guests and serve them on individual platters.
A fancy-looking dish like this also goes well with a drink to mark the occasion. Have a look at my strawberry red wine sangria for a drink that is rich and tart.
Recipe Card
Burrata with Pesto and Tomatoes
Ingredients
- 1 burrata (minimum 8 oz/225 grams)
- 3 cups (about 1lb or 450 grams) of cherry tomatoes (or baby tomatoes)
- 1/3 cup fresh homemade pesto
- lemon zest from one lemon
- lemon juice of half a lemon (about 2 tbsp lemon juice)
- 1/2 tsp flaky sea salt (or more to taste)
- 3 tbsp extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 baguette to make crostini (to serve with the burrata)
- optional garnishing: extra-virgin olive oil and fresh basil
Instructions
- Make the crostini. Cut the baguette into 1/2-inch slices and then brush each slice on both sides with some olive oil. Grill the bread on a grill, grill pan, or electric grill for a couple of minutes on each side. Alternatively, you could bake the bread slices at 360°F (180°C) for about 10-12 minutes in the oven.
- To a pan, over medium-high heat, add 1 tbsp of olive oil and the cherry tomatoes. Pan fry for about 8-10 minutes until a bit charred on the outside and a bit soft on the inside (with some of the juices coming out). Alternatively, you could roast them in the oven at 390°F (200°C) for about 10 minutes.
- Add the zest and juice of half a lemon (about 2 tbsp of fresh lemon juice) to the charred tomatoes.
- Transfer the tomatoes to a serving plate (with all the juices) and then drizzle the fresh pesto over them.
- Place the burrata over the tomatoes. Add the remaining lemon zest from the second half of the lemon.
- Sprinkle some flaky sea salt (like Maldon) and, optionally, drizzle some extra-virgin olive oil on top. Now for the fun part. Cut open the burrata, and let that delicious burrata mix with the juices of the tomatoes and the pesto. Mop this up with crostinis for a mouthful of utter Mediterrenean magic!
We all have a weak spot for cheese in our household, so as you can imagine, this one went down well to say the least!
If you made this and enjoyed it, please leave a review below. Also, let me know what you served it with in the comments.
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Don’t forget to save this rich appetizer to one of your food boards, ready for when you need to plan an event that needs several dishes and appetizers.
