Apparently, customers go to Nopi - Ottolenghi's restaurant in London - for this dish alone. They sell about 1,ooo each month.
Burrata, which means "buttered" in Italian is a fresh cheese made from mozzarella and cream. The outer shell is pure mozzarella while the softer inside is a mixture of mozzarella and cream, which starts to ooze out when a ball is pulled apart . Burrata is second to none and worth seeking out, ( I found mine at Carriageworks Farmer Market) However if you can't find it buffalo milk mozzarella can be used as an alternative.
Burrata is commonly paired with tomatoes but, when playing with flavours for this before NOPI opened, Scully walked past a man sitting on a bench in Finsbury Park eating a blood orange. A citrus sparks struck, lavender was in season, Yotam introduced the coriander seeds and the dish was born!
Bitter-sweet blood oranges have a short season in late winter but many alternatives have been served at NOPI : white peaches, clementines, pink grapefruit, roasted red grapes, pickled pears and kohlrabi. Regular oranges, for those who want to keep things simple also work very well.
Serves 4
2 tbsp olive oil
1 1/2 tsp clear runny honey
3/4tspdried lavender
1/2 small garlic clove, crushed
1 tbsp coriander seeds, toasted
2 blood oranges or 2 medium oranges
4 burrata balls 5g basil or micro basil leaves
coarse sea salt.
- Place the oil in a small saucepan with the honey, lavender, garlic and 3/4 teaspoon of salt. Bring to a simmer on a medium-low heat and remove at once. Stir well and set aside until completely cool, the add the coriander seeds
2. Use a small, sharp, serrated knife to trim the tops and tails off the oranges. Ct down the sides of the oranges, following their natural curve, to remove the skin and white pith. slice into 8 rounds , 1cm thick and remove the pips.
3. Divide the orange slices between the plates, slightly overlapping and place a burrata ball alongside. Spoon the coriander seeds and lavender oil over the cheese and orange, top with the basil leaves - tearing them as you go, or the micro basil left whole, and serve.
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