Roasted Beet Peach and Burrata Salad with Basil Oil and Candied Pistachios
This stunningly simple roasted beet peach and burrata salad is garnished with basil oil and candied pistachios.
Can I ask a big favor of you all? Go out and buy peaches. Like now, and then go home and make this beet, peach and burrata salad.
This is the one summer recipe that you still have to make–and I don’t know how much longer good peaches will be available (maybe another week or two?), so you might need to move quickly.
I mean, beets, peaches, burrata, candied pistachios, and basil oil. It does not get better than this.
Also, I realize this is the third recipe that I’ve asked you to make that calls for basil oil (first, these shrimp skewers and then, this hash), but I love that stuff. It totally makes this salad. I could also survive on candied pistachios, but that is besides the point.
To be perfectly honest, I can’t take credit for the creativity behind this salad. This dish was inspired by the lovely Joe Yonan (food editor of the Washington Post and author of the recent cookbook Eat Your Vegetables).
I was lucky enough to be introduced to him last year, and recently helped him with a private dinner event, where we served a salad very similar to this one. I ended up recreating and serving it a few weeks ago for a fancy dinner at home with Connor and my soon-to-be in-laws, where it was met with rave reviews, and eventually decided I needed to share it with you all as well.
The best part of this dish is that it comes together so quickly. The most time consuming step is roasting the beets–my favorite method is to simply scrub them very well, wrap them tightly in foil, and roast them at 375 degrees for 45 minutes to one hour.
The peaches are blanched and peeled very easily by scoring and placing them in a bowl, and pouring over boiling water (I used my kettle). I’m not a huge fan of peach skin, especially in salads, and this step almost helps to bring out the flavor of the peaches even more, if that makes any sense at all.
The icing on the proverbial cake is the creamy burrata cheese. If you’ve never tried burrata, it is essentially mozzarella that has been stuffed with cream. It is creamy, decadent, and best served at room temperature.
It is one of my absolute favorite cheeses (or ingredients, for that matter), and although it is expensive and a little hard to come by, you will not regret the decision at all.
Roasted Beet Peach and Burrata Salad with Basil Oil and Candied Pistachios
Ingredients
Roasted Beets:
- 4 large golden beets roughly ¾ lb
Candied Pistachios:
- ¼ cup shelled pistachios
- 2 teaspoons granulated sugar
- pinch kosher salt
- 1 teaspoon turbinado sugar
Assembly:
- 3 large peaches
- 8 ounces burrata cheese room temperature
- homemade basil oil see linked recipe
- high-quality extra virgin olive oil for drizzling
- flaky salt, such as Maldon for finishing
Instructions
- Roast the Beets: Preheat the oven to 375°F (190°C) with a rack in the center position. Trim the beet greens (reserve and use for sauteed beet greens), leave roughly ½-inch stem visible. Do not remove or trim the root end. Scrub and clean the beets gently, without piercing or removing the skin.
- Wrap each beet tightly in aluminum foil, and place them in a roasting pan and wrap tightly with foil. Bake for at least 45 minutes or up to 1¼ hours. Time will vary depending on the size of beets. Check the beets by unwrapping them, be very careful for steam, and piercing the center of the beet with a paring knife. If the knife meets no resistance, the beets are finished cooking. Set aside to cool completely.
- Wait until the beets are cool enough to handle (they will be easier to peel when slightly warm). Peel gently with fingers, remove root and tail, and slice into half-moons or wedges.
- Prepare the Candied Pistachios: Meanwhile, combine the pistachios in a small bowl with the granulated sugar, 1 teaspoon of water, and a pinch of salt. Place the pistachios on a half sheet pan, sprinkle with the turbinado sugar, and toast for 10 to 12 minutes in a 375°F (190°C) by themselves or with the beets as they are cooking, or until the pistachios are caramelized and golden. Set on a rack and allow the pistachios to cool completely.
- Prepare the Peaches: Cut a very thin (just enough to pierce the skin) “X” on the bottom of each peach. Place the peaches in a big bowl and cover completely with hot boiling water. Allow the peaches to blanch in the hot water for at least 5 minutes, or until the peel is easily removable. Right before serving, slice the peaches in half, core, and cut them into wedges.
- Assemble: Drizzle a large platter with basil oil. Distribute the peach and beet slices amongst the plates. Set the burrata on a paper-towel lined plate to absorb any excess liquid, cut in half, and set on the platter. Add more basil oil as desired. Drizzle the plate lightly with high-quality olive oil and sprinkle with flaky salt. Garnish with chopped candied pistachios and serve immediately.
Tips for Success:
- Roasted and peeled beets can be prepared up to 2 days in advance, and kept in a container in the fridge. Feel free to halve the basil oil recipe; however it will last in the fridge for 3 to 4 weeks (and can be used for a variety of other dishes!). Candied pistachios can be prepared several days in advance.
54 Comments on “Roasted Beet Peach and Burrata Salad with Basil Oil and Candied Pistachios”
The individual components are lovely, but neither my husband nor I thought that the salad as a whole made sense. Maybe using frozen peaches let us down? The burrata and the carmelized pistachios were heavenly together, but neither the beets nor the peaches tasted good with either component. The basil oil was unsurprisingly lovely on the burrata, but it tasted odd on the beets and unpleasant on the peaches.
Hi Kali! Sorry to say this, but I really think the frozen peaches were the downfall. This flavors of this salad are really contingent on having amazing, fresh, ripe, sweet peaches – and frozen peaches are sort of notorious for being under ripe, tart, and not good for pretty much anything but smoothies and maybe a pie (if you’re stuck!). I would think just that factor alone would make everything seem sort of off. Did you roast golden beets from scratch? This is also really important!
I like to save recipes to my FB page but don’t see a FB link.
You would have to share the URL of the recipe, and then save the subsequent post! Sorry!
🙂 <3
I want to live in these pictures…I would sit right there in that creamy burrata.
Currently moaning in a ridiculous way given that I’m still at work. But this just looks so good!
Eating it for lunch right now – yum yum!
Yay!! Thanks so much Sarah! Glad to hear you enjoyed it.
As a huge peach lover and a big fan of bur rata, this salad is definitely calling me. Gorgeous shots, as usual!
Thanks so much Denise!
Candied pistachios?! And I could basically eat bur rata for 3 meals a day. This is so dreamy.
You’re right – it doesn’t get much better than this! We’ve got just a couple bins of peaches left at the market and I’ve been hoarding them every time I’m there. I need this salad in my life – adding to the dinner plan tonight!
Thanks Sarah! Let me know if you make it!
How lovely! I love that you caramelized the pistachios … and thanks for the description of burrata. I’ve seen it in so many recipes but you made me realise I had no idea what it was!
No problem! It is like a much, much better mozzarella 🙂 You’ll love it!
I love beets, especially the golden ones! And basil oil is the best, so feel free to use it in more recipes! 🙂 This is a gorgeous salad. I can see why it was a winner.
Me too! They are much less messy too. Can’t get over my love of the basil oil, and it lasts so long!
Wow, that does sound like an amazing send-off to summer. I’ve never combined beets and peaches, but now that you say it, I can’t believe I never thought of it. Lovely.