Sweet and juicy strawberries pair with rich and creamy burrata for a colorful salad that easily comes together in under 20 minutes!
Ingredients: strawberries, burrata, little gems, croutons, basil, vinaigrette. The quality of each ingredient is what makes this summer salad shine.
Perfectly ripe strawberries are a quintessential summer fruit. This dish is what summer cooking is all about – highlighting fresh and local produce, at the peak of their season, in an easy way with minimal prep.
Why this Recipe Works
- Quick & easy. With minimal ingredients and prep, this salad comes together in under 20 minutes.
- Balance of Flavor. Sweet and juicy strawberries pair with rich and creamy burrata, crunchy croutons, crispy little gems and savory basil.
- Homemade croutons from fresh, rustic and hearty bread. Toasting fresh bread in the oven for croutons, instead of the traditionally used stale bread, produces a better texture.
- Strawberry flavor is intensified! The balsamic, basil and black pepper bring out the sweetness of the strawberries and intensify their flavor.
The salad celebrates the very best of the summer. Few high-quality fresh ingredients going from simple to sublime when properly balanced.
How to Make this Recipe
- Slice or tear your croutons, toss with olive oil and place in oven.
Notes on bread for croutons: Choose your crouton bread wisely! Think dense, rusty, hearty, dark country style bread (think pretty much the opposite of wonder bread). - While they’re in the oven wash lettuce, cut strawberries, and whisk the vinaigrette together.
- Assemble salad and enjoy.
How to Prep Salad in Advance
Vinaigrette: make up to a week in advance and store in the fridge.
Little gems wash and dry up to a day in advance and stored in the fridge.
Strawberries: sliced hours before serving and store in the fridge.
Basil: cut or tear hours before serving and store in the fridge.
Assemble Salad: The entire salad can be assembled a few hours before serving. Store in the fridge and drizzle dressing immediately before serving.
If prepping and assembling salad in advance, simply take out of the fridge and drizzle dressing when ready to serve!.
Notes
Inspiration for this salad: the Panzanella.
It’s a Cali summer take on this popular Tuscan chopped summer salad of soaked stale bread, onions, and tomatoes.
Here tomatoes are swapped for strawberries and stale bread for hearty fresh toasted bread.
Rather it’s strawberry-licious Cali riff and not much traditional going on.
The salad celebrates the very best of the summer. Few high-quality fresh ingredients going from simple to sublime when properly balanced.
Variations
Strawberries: can be swapped out for pretty much any other summer fruit. Or make this stone fruit and burrata salad.
Burrata: can be swapped for mozzarella.
Balsamic Vinegar: can be swapped for champagne vinegar or another vinegar variety.
Basil: Can we be swapped for mint.
Little Gems: can be swapped for any of type of greens. Best little gem substitute is romaine but arugula, butter lettuce, and many others can work too! Note: Generally, little gems are only found at farmers market.
Croutons: If you prefer, it’s technically possible to buy really great croutons. But if you’ve never made croutons, I implore you to try… once you’ve homemade you’ll never go store bought.
Additions: Heirloom tomatoes, avocado, other cheeses, other berries, a carnivorous prosciutto, pancetta or bacon kick and more… the edible sky’s the limit.
Cooks Tips
- When possible, buy local and organic strawberries.
- Generally, the smaller the strawberry, the sweeter the flavor.
- Not all burrata is created equal. Get the good stuff.
- To make the croutons, use dense, and hearty country style bread
- The salad can be assembled 1-2 hours in advance before serving and kept in the fridge.
- Leftover strawberry salad will keep in the fridge for 1-2 days.
More summer salad recipes:
- Summer Salad Ideas
- Stone Fruit Salad with Burrata
- Stone Fruit & Crispy Prosciutto Salad
- Caramelized Fig Salad with with Prosciutto and Blue Cheese
- Plum & Cucumber Salad with Roasted Ginger Vinaigrette
Have ya tried this recipe? I’d love to hear about it and see it too! Please leave a comment below and share it on Instagram with the tag @DanielaGerson! You can also follow me on Facebook, Instagram and Pinterest to see more colorfully delicious food and all sorts of awesome adventures!
Let’s make waves in the kitchen!
Strawberry Salad with Burrata
Ingredients
Strawberry Burrata Panzanella
- 1 pound loaf of hearty bread cut or torn into bite sized pieces
- 3 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon kosher salt
- black pepper to taste
- 4 heads little gems
- 2 pints strawberries hulled and halved/quartered
- 2 balls burrata 8oz/ball
- handful basil leaves cut or roughly torn
Balsamic Vinaigrette
- 2 shallots minced
- 3 tablespoons balsamic vinaigrette
- 1 tablespoon honey
- 1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
- kosher salt
- freshly cracked blacl pepper
Instructions
- Preheat oven to 400F degrees. Cut or tear the bread into 1-inch cubes.
- Tear or cut the bread into bite sized pieces. Transfer to a baking sheet, drizzle with olive oil and sprinkle with salt and pepper. Toss until bread is evenly coated and spread out in a single layer. Bake until croutons are crisp and golden brown, about 15 minutes. Remove and use on the salad as needed.
- While the bread is toasting, wash and dry the little gems lettuce and wash and cut the strawberries.
- To make the vinaigrette, combine minced shallots, honey and vinegar in a bowl. Whisking constantly, drizzle in the 1/2 cup olive oil. Season dressing to taste with salt and pepper.
- Lightly toss the bread cubes, the lettuce and the strawberies with some of the vinaigrette, keeping each seperate (optional).
- In a large bowl, plater or tray, arrange the little gems, strawberries, croutons and burrata cheese. Season with salt and pepper and drizzle with the vinaigrette. Top with basil.
Notes
- When possible, buy local and organic strawberries.
- Generally, the smaller the strawberry, the sweeter the flavor.
- Not all burrata is created equal. Get the good stuff.
- To make the croutons, use dense, and hearty country style bread
- The salad can be assembled 1-2 hours in advance before serving and kept in the fridge.
- Leftover strawberry salad will keep in the fridge for 1-2 days.
Can’t wait to prepare this recipe. I love all the ingredients. Seems easy light, fresh and DELICIOUS !
Thank you chefdanielagerson
You are AMAZING Jacqueline!!! Super stoked to hear your excited to make this! Please do let me know how it goes and thanks so much for all your super sweet feedback :)!
This salad looks so gooood! Full of fresh summer flavors, I could eat this every day.
So super stoked to hear that Amy! I absolutely cooking with seasonally fresh flavors :).
This looks amazing! I love how the strawberries sweeten up such a decedent dish. This is a great meal for even my kids to enjoy!
Thanks so much for the feedback Amy! And def stoked to hear that your kids will enjoy this too :)!
Burrata is amongst my MOST favorite things! Oh man, that in combination with strawberries and toasty bread sounds SO amazing!
Thanks so much for the super sweet feedback Kelly! And I def agree! Burrata makes everything so much better :).
YUM! Perfect side dish to bring along to summer BBQs…and I can’t wait to try this basil vinaigrette dressing!!
So super stoked to hear that Tatiana! Will def be a showstopper at your BBQ :)! Cant wait for ya to make it!
I never thought of adding balsamic and basil to strawberries. What a gourmet way to fix them, it looks delicious.
Thanks so much Kallee!!! And strawberries, basil and balsamic are indeed a very dreamy combo! Hope ya love it as much as I do :).
Can't wait to make this salad in our kitchen, a perfect salad to celebrate summer!
So stoked to hear that Jagruti! All about celebrating summer :). Thanks so much for the sweet feedback!
I love that you have added so much extra flavor and texture to this salad. It is the perfect use for all these summer strawberries.
Thanks so much for the sweet feedback Jacquelyn! Really appreciate it and hope you're enjoying all of the seasons awesome strawberry bounty :)!
A truly delicious way to enjoy strawberries and a salad at once. This is a refreshing summer salad that I can't wait to make.
Awesome Des super stoked to hear that! Please let me know how it goes after ya make it... I'd absolutely love to hear :)!
I'm totally in love with your version of panzanella! Strawberries and burrata, yum! Two of the most delicious foods on the planet!!
Thanks so much for the sweet feedback Jacqueline!!! And absolutely agreed on the yumminess of strawberries and burrata :).