Burrata with Beetroot & Hazelnuts
inspired by Coin Laundry
Leaving south London now, and heading to Clerkenwell for my starter in my fantasy seven course, seven restaurant, menu.
And I’m breaking my rules slightly here. As I have eaten at Coin Laundry before. But I’ve never eaten there properly.
Opposite a place I work regularly, this is a favourite drinking spot at the top of Exmouth Market. More than one birthday has been toasted with a drink here after work.
But I’ve never gone here specifically to eat. I’ve had some bowls of chips. I think I had some flatbread one time. But I’ve always looked at the food coming out of the kitchen and thought, I really should come and eat here one day.
That day will have to wait a little while longer (what are we thinking…. March? Maybe April before we get back to eating out? I’m not feeling optimistic…) so for now they are going to inspire my starter.
Burrata.
Coin Laundry have an English made burrata. Mine, from Waitrose, is from Italy. So still sort of carrying on the Italian theme after yesterday’s Truffle Arancini.
What is Burrata?
From the outside it looks like mozzarella. But inside, hidden within the outer mozzarella coating, is a delicious filling of soft cheese curds and cream. Basically it means it’s softer, richer and a whole load more calories than a normal ball of mozzarella. Excellent.
It also gives me an excuse to have a little bit more sourdough, made on Monday, lightly toasted and dunked into the creamy cheese goodness.
But first I need to make the accompaniments.
Beetroot comes from the garden. Washed and wrapped in foil, it goes into the oven for an hour or so until soft. Once it’s cool enough to handle I pull off the skin and chop it into small pieces.
Into a bowl it goes with some olive oil, fresh oregano and a little balsamic vinegar. I season and leave it to sit on the kitchen counter for a few hours.
The hazelnuts simply get toasted in a dry frying pan and them roughly chopped. And I make a little herb oil by finely chopping a few sorrel leaves I find in the fridge with some basil and mix them with olive oil.
To dish up I spoon the herby green oil into a bowl and place the burrata on top. I nestle the marinated beetroot and toasted hazelnuts alongside. That’s it.
By far the most simple of the courses I’m cooking this week. But I’m grateful for that.
Sometimes the simplest things really are the best. Good produce. Home grown veg.
That’s more than enough for me.
Now to crack on with the next four courses…..
Burrata with Beetroot & Hazelnuts
Ingredients
- 1 burrata (150g drained)
- 1 large beetroot
- 1 handful hazelnuts
- extra virgin olive oil
- 1 tsp balsamic vinegar
- oregano (fresh or dried)
- 1 tbsp chopped fresh soft herbs (basil, parsley, oregano, sorrel etc)
Instructions
- If you are using a raw beetroot wrap it in foil and place it into a preheated oven for about 1 hour until it is soft all the way through. Once cool enough to handle peel away the skin. If you are short on time you could buy precooked beetroot and skip this step.
- Once you have a peeled, cooked beetroot roughly chop it into a large dice. Place in a small bowl with a good drizzle of olive oil, the balsamic vinegar and some fresh (or dried) oregano. Season with salt and pepper and leave on the counter for an hour or so to marinade.
- Half an hour before eating get your burrata out of the fridge so it can warm up slightly.
- Place a small frying pan on a medium high heat and toast the hazelnuts before roughly chopping.
- To make the herb oil simply finely chop any soft herbs you have (parsely, basil, oregano, sorrel, dill etc) and mix with olive oil.
- To plate up spoon your herb oil into a bowl and top with the burrata. Add the marinated beetroot (including the juices) and top with the toasted hazelnuts. Serve with crusty bread for dunking.