On a recent trip to San Francsico, my "foodie home away from home", I had the opportunity to try two restaurants I had never been to before, one of which I had walked by many a time but had never ventured in. I am talking about Kuleto's in Union Square - reason being I never stopped in was because of its location on Powell Street smack dab in the what I call the tourist trap which was always just discouraging. But, as I was heading back down to the BART station to head out of town, I realized it was about lunch time, and I thought to head in, since I was walking right by.
And, where I thought it was just going to be another tourist-filled joint with sub-par/average Italian food, I was quite happily surprised with the ambiance and the menu. Plus, I overheard, as I sat down at the bar (of course) the bartender asking a couple next to me if they wanted their "usual". Obviously, this was a destination restaurant for some!
After scanning the menu, realizing I wanted to just keep it light with an appetizer or two, I focused on this:
Bruschetta con Burrata
Grilled garlic bread, arugula, fresh burrata, sherry vinegar-marinated roasted red peppers, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt
Grilled garlic bread, arugula, fresh burrata, sherry vinegar-marinated roasted red peppers, extra virgin olive oil, sea salt
I am a SUCKER for burrata cheese, and never can get enough of it. For those who haven't tasted what I consider a heavenly cheese, burrata is a fresh mozzarella that has a soft center made of mozzarella and cream, that when you cut into it it just...how to describe...it softly "melts".
This light appetizer sounded fantastic, and it was indeed (see picture at top of blog). The creamy burrata paired excellent with the arugula and garlicky toast, but the highlight was the small spike of the sherry vinegar with the roasted peppers. All in all, it was so damn simple, but so damn good! I swore, sitting there at Kuleto's bar, that a) I would definitely visit Kuleto's again, and b) that I would recreate this dish at home.
And that is just what I did.
Ingredients:
2 red bell peppers, roasted and skin peeled (method to follow)
Sherry vinegar
4 slices ciabatta bread (or sourdough or french - I prefer ciabatta)
Butter or olive oil (for toasting the bread)
1 clove garlic
1 tub burrata cheese (there are different brands, I prefer Angelo and Franco, available at Whole Foods)
Baby arugula
1 lemon
Extra virgin olive oil
Sel Gris (or any other sea salt - I just prefer Sel Gris, it is a great finishing salt)
First, get to roasting the peppers, I prefer to do it over the flames from my gas range:
Let the skin crackle and burn while turning peppers over to get fully charred:
Once the peppers are completely charred, transfer to a bowl and cover with plastic wrap. This allows the peppers to cool and also sweat to help in removing the charred skin more easily.
I usually wait about 10 minutes before peeling the skins.
Once "skinned", slice the peppers and remove all of the seeds:
I usually then trim out the light "membrane" you see in the pic above.
Then, slice the peppers length-wise into strips, about 1/4" to 1/2" thick:
From here, I just "eye-balled" enough sherry vinegar to coat the peppers. You can add more or less depending on how much of the sherry flavor you feel compliments the peppers. (Note: these peppers can be done ahead of time PLUS can be stored in the fridge for up to a week to use with other dishes)
Next, slice a few slices of ciabatta:
Next, I melt butter and olive oil together to toast the bread (you can do this in the oven or on a grill, but I just prefer to do the bread this way - I find it doesn't get too crispy or dried out, because you want a little "chew" with the bread in this dish):
In goes the bread:
Remove the bread and let it cool for a few minutes on paper towels. Take the garlic clove, slice it in half width-wise, and while the bread is still warm, rub the cut end of the garlic on the bread - this will infuse the garlic flavor into the dish without being super overwhelming.
Last, it is time to assemble:
Place crostini/bread on plate, add some burrata cheese to each crostini, top with a little handful of arugula, some peppers, drizzle a little extra virgin olive oil, squeeze a little lemon juice all over, and sprinkle some sea salt definitely on top of the cheese as well as the rest of the components. Even a little cracked pepper is nice!
And really, it is as simple as that. And, it was just as good as Kuleto's, if not better.
My Dad happened to be my "guest" for this dish, and he gave it a huge two thumbs up, and in my family, that would be a proper "CHEERS".
