We are approaching late summer, which means it’s tomato season! Time to make those BLTs, tomato sauces and, of course, fresh tomato salads. As the Executive Chef of Balboa Bay Resort’s new weekly Sunday Seafood Brunch, Chef Prabeen Prathapan knows a thing or two about fresh, seasonal dishes. He shares with us his signature heirloom tomato and burrata salad, a perfect brunch or lunch on a hot summer day.
Local Heirloom Tomato & Burrata Salad
Roasted candied beets, prosciutto, frisée, aged balsamic and micro basil
Makes: 4 portions
Preparation time: 20 minutes
Cooking time for the beets: 1.5 hours
Ingredients
3 lbs. heirloom mix tomato (4 each)
6oz. Burrata cheese
1 oz. heavy cream
1 tbsp chives, chopped
1 large candied/red beets
12 slices Prosciutto
1 bunch frisée
2 tbsp aged balsamic vinegar
1 tbsp lemon oil
1 oz. micro basil
1 tbsp parsley, chopped
Sea salt to taste
Pepper, crushed, to taste
Preparation
Pre-heat the oven to 400 degrees.
Wash the beet in cold water. Roast for an hour and half, in a roasting pan covered with aluminum foil, until the beets are cooked.
While the beets are roasting, wash and cut the tomatoes into wedges.
In a bowl, take the burrata cheese and using a whisk, blend in the heavy cream until it is paste consistency. Add chopped chives and salt to taste.
Using your knife, shave the top end (green part) of the frisée. Add micro basil and chopped parsley to the frisée and mix in a bowl.
Once the beets are ready, cool them down in ice water. Peel the beets and slice them into roundels, ¼ of an inch thickness. You can also cut them into wedges to make it easier.
Now it’s time to assemble the salad, which can be done as your heart desires. Take a plate or a platter, spoon the burrata mix, spread the beets around, add the tomato wedges and prosciutto.
Season with sea salt and pepper.
Add lemon oil and sea salt to the frisée salad mix and garnish it on the salad.
Finish with drizzle of aged balsamic vinegar.
Tips: Insert a skewer or small knife into the beets to check if it is cooked. To reduce the total time, beets can be cooked up to two days in advance. Use a kitchen towel rub the surface of the beet to remove the skin. If possible, purchase the tomatoes from the local farmers market.
