This burrata recipe is a delicious summer appetizer! I pair the creamy cheese with juicy tomatoes and peaches and drizzle lemon thyme oil on top.
This burrata recipe is one of my favorite summer appetizers. It combines rich, creamy burrata cheese with juicy heirloom tomatoes, sweet peaches, and pistachios for crunch. I drizzle it all with an infused lemon thyme oil for bright, woodsy flavor, then serve it with crusty bread or crostini for scooping it all up.
A few years ago, burrata began popping up on restaurant menus all over Chicago. I started enjoying burrata regularly and found that the creamy cheese was a perfect rich accent for fresh summer produce. I fell in love with the combination, and eventually, I couldn’t resist making a burrata recipe of my own.
This burrata appetizer has been one of our summer go-tos ever since. It’s sweet, herbaceous, and easy to make, with the perfect balance of richness and freshness. I hope you love it as much as we do!
What is burrata?
If you’ve never heard of burrata, you’re in for a treat. It’s a fresh Italian cheese made from cow’s milk or sometimes buffalo milk. In the store, it looks a lot like fresh mozzarella cheese, because it comes in balls. In fact, each ball is a pouch of fresh mozzarella filled with rich, fresh cream and small shreds of cheese, called stracciatella.
You can find burrata in specialty cheese shops or most grocery stores with a good cheese section. It pairs well with both sweet and savory flavors, so I made this recipe with a jumble of stone fruit, tomatoes, and fresh herbs.
Burrata Recipe Ingredients
Instead of whisking together a dressing, I make a simple infused oil for this recipe. It has a light, lemon-thyme flavor that lets the creamy burrata and fresh produce shine. It’s easy to make: just combine 1/2 cup olive oil with a smashed garlic clove, 4 sprigs of thyme, and the rind of 1 lemon, peeled into strips. Warm it over your stove, and then let it steep while you prep the other recipe components. Strain out the thyme, garlic, and lemon before you drizzle it over the tomatoes, burrata, and peaches.
Along with the infused oil, I pair the cheese with a market haul of summer produce. Here’s what you need:
- Burrata, of course! I use one ball, but feel free to scale this recipe up if you’re serving a crowd. Tip: Let the burrata come to room temperature before serving. The filling will have a creamier taste and texture than it would straight from the fridge.
- Fresh tomatoes – A mix of colors and sizes makes this burrata appetizer extra fun.
- Peaches – Look for ripe, yet still firm fruits that will hold their shape when sliced.
- Cherries and/or currants – These guys aren’t totally necessary, but they’re a pretty, tart contrast to the sweet peaches and tomatoes.
- Fresh herbs – I garnished mine with basil and thyme, but mint or oregano would be nice additions too.
- Toasted crushed pistachios – They add a delightful, nutty crunch.
- Sea salt – Don’t skimp on this! The saltiness will really highlight the herbal, sweet, and savory notes of this dish.
Pile everything onto a platter with the cheese in the center, and drizzle generously with the lemon-thyme oil. Serve with good crusty bread—I like sourdough or baguette toasted to make crostini. Then, dig in, scooping up a little of the luscious creamy cheese with every bite!
How to Serve this Burrata Appetizer
This burrata recipe is one of my favorite summer appetizers. I love to serve it when we have friends over for a happy hour in the summer. Set it out when you’re sipping glasses of wine or Aperol spritzes in the backyard, and it will disappear in minutes.
It would also be a fantastic addition to a late summer dinner with Italian flavors. Serve it alongside your favorite protein or any of these recipes:
More Summer Appetizers to Try
If you love this recipe, try one of these summer appetizers next:
- Caprese Skewers
- Whipped Feta Dip
- Bruschetta
- Marinated Mozzarella Balls
- Or any of these 28 Easy Summer Appetizers!
Can’t get enough burrata? Try this burrata salad next!
Burrata with Heirloom Tomatoes
Ingredients
Lemon-Thyme Oil (makes extra)
- ½ cup extra-virgin olive oil
- 1 garlic clove, crushed
- Peel from 1 small lemon, removed in strips with a vegetable peeler
- 4 fresh thyme sprigs
For the burrata appetizer platter
- 4 heirloom tomatoes, sliced into wedges
- 1 ripe peach, sliced
- 1 (8-ounce) ball fresh burrata cheese
- ½ cup fresh basil and/or mint leaves
- 1 tablespoon toasted pistachios, chopped
- Cherries or fresh currants, optional
- Flaky sea salt and freshly ground black pepper
- Toasted bread or crostini, for serving
Instructions
- Make the lemon-thyme oil: Combine the olive oil, garlic, lemon peel, and thyme in a small saucepan over low heat. Gently warm the mixture, then turn off the heat. Let steep for 20 minutes, then strain.
- Make the burrata appetizer platter: Arrange the tomatoes, peach slices, and burrata on a platter. Sprinkle with salt, then drizzle with some of the lemon-thyme oil. Top with the basil and mint and sprinkle with the pistachios. Top with cherries and currants, if desired. Season to taste with salt and pepper and serve with toasted bread.
Notes
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Love this recipe but we add one fabulous ingredient as the dressing: Pomegranate molasses. Tonight’s supper with crisp Olive rolls.
Hi Lynne, ooh yum! Pomegranate molasses would be fantastic here. Great suggestion!
Hi there – How long in advance can I make the oil infused dressing? Will it keep for 48 hours in the refridgerator? Thank you!
Hi Coco, yes! You can make the oil 2 days ahead. It might solidify in the fridge, but it will become liquid again if you let it sit at room temperature for a few minutes.
It was almost 100 degress outside today, this salad for dinner hit the spot. It was delicious, the cherries & peaches mixed with burrata were incredible!! I wish I could post my picture.
Hi Dinora, I’m so glad it hit the spot!
Hi. I’m not familiar with this cheese but had it at a restaurant last year. And loved it. Wanting to make this but wondering about the cheese. Do you take the outside layer off the cheese before you serve it ?
Hi Becky, no, leave the outer layer and just scoop and eat the whole thing.
This was so delicious we didn’t even need the protein on the side. It was better than the roasted chicken I had to go with it. I will make it again!
Hi Carol, I’m so glad you loved the burrata!
I made this beautiful salad for a dinner party last night. All the guests raved about the combinations of flavors and the presentation. I added a side of Kin Dee Thai Longan Flower Hot Honey for those who like a bit of spice!
This recipe definitely be added to my summer dish list.
I’m so glad it was a hit!
Love this salad, fresh, flavorful, gorgeous presentation. I will definitely make it again! Next time I will drizzle with aged balsamic vinegar to finish.
I’m so glad you enjoyed it!
I have made this several times and every body loves it. So beautiful and delicious. A party staple for me !
I’m so glad you’ve loved it!
This was absolutely delicious. So fresh so light so delightful. Thank you. I wasn’t sure I would like the fresh mint, but the fresh spearmint was so perfect with the basil and everything else. I also tried it with fresh plums – yummy. Lastly for presentation, I think for me it will work nicely if I gently put together everything and then spoon it onto the platter around the burrata and drizzle the infused olive oil. Added fresh cherries as you suggested.
Hi Amanda, I’m so glad you loved it!
This looks amazing! I want to make it so badly for an upcoming special dinner but peaches aren’t quite in season where I am. If I can’t find ripe ones, do you have any thoughts between using frozen peaches, canned peaches, or maybe just adding some low sugar peach preserves to the top of the salad? Or using another fruit? No worries if you don’t have any thoughts! Really appreciate the recipe!
Hi Elisa, I think this would be delicious with strawberries. Peaches are one of those special things that I only love to use while in season but strawberries would be a great sub.
Thanks so much for the reply! We will go with strawberries if we can’t find good peaches. All the best!
Absolutely delicious. It’s a wonderful combination of flavors. Thank you!
Love this. Could not find fresh peaches so used ones in a jar. It made the salad a little messy but the flavor was spectacular. The Leon Tarragon olive oil made the dish.
Please, tell me if this recipe for Burrata is in one of your cookbooks.
Hi Catherine, this recipe is just here on the blog. There’s a different burrata recipe, with broccoli rabe, in Love & Lemons Every Day.
Thank you for your speedy reply! My daughter made the Burrata recipe on this blog for my husband’s birthday and it not only looked spectacular, it was delicious!
WHOA. This recipe is SO good. It tastes like something I once ate at a really good Italian restaurant. The thyme and lemon olive oil makes a huge difference.
I didn’t have peaches so used blueberries instead and it turned out really good and a nice contrast in palate compared to the tomato and cheese.
I’ll be making this many times more!
Made this salad and everyone loved it! Question, should you refrigerate the leftover olive oil or can it be left out?
Hi Jen, I’m so happy to hear! It can be left out at room temp.
This is my new favorite appetizer recipe! So fresh, and the blend of flavors and textures is spectacular.
I’m so glad you loved it!
What a symphony of flavours! As long as the tomatoes and peaches are in season, this is quite a delight! Thanks for sharing!
Perfection.
burrata is wonderful, never thought of it in a salad, great idea, always better than mozzarella more flavor, thank you for this recipe
The flavors of this recipe sound like an extraordinary combination. What really lured me in is the infused oil. We don’t do appetizers (and don’t entertain), so I think I would make this a side for some protein. Now all I have to do is hope that my grocery store carries burrata. If it doesn’t, it seems like fresh mozzarella would work, but would not be as richly flavored.
fresh mozzarella would work just fine. I hope you enjoy!
Made this for lunch today, and we both really enjoyed it. I had only mint for the herb, but it worked nicely, and I used little fresh mozzarella balls in place of the burrata. Served with (please forgive me) grilled pork chops. Amazingly, I had a perfectly ripe peach (difficult to find here). I love it when something sounds as good as this recipe did, and turns out to be that good. Thank you for a keeper recipe, which is perfect for our 100º+ weather.
Hi Susan, I’m so glad it hit the spot!!
This is a beautiful dish! I’m going to try and re-create it for a dinner party I’m having next week. Thank you!
I hope you enjoy!
I made it. It was very good!!!! I was skeptical about warming up the olive oil with all the ingredients, but it was totally worthy. This salad tastes good and LOOKS GOOD!