Fresh and tender green beans, crispy fried shallots, creamy burrata, and juicy ripe tomatoes! This is the Italian green bean salad you’ve been waiting for and you totally need to go and make it right now.
Hey, look! Crispy fried shallots and cute burrata! I did promise you a green bean salad for the shallots I posted a few days ago and here it is. Tada! 🙂
I started with the idea of green beans topped with the fried shallots and everything tossed with my homemade Italian dressing. But, no matter how tasty the beans are this time of year, I always need to complicate things a little bit more. (And how could I resist adding in some tomatoes??) It keeps life interesting and keeps things balanced.
Though honestly, this is still pretty simple!
Here, the green beans are tender and full of ‘green’ flavors. Kind of comforting and mild. Then the tomatoes bring in the sugar and the acid along with their soft textures. The cheese gives us the creamy components. And the shallots bring in their crispy onion-ness. Add in a homemade Italian dressing and this salad is anything but boring.
One thing I don’t like is boring. I’ve never been someone who makes the same dishes over and over again. That is what keeps me looking for new flavors and new recipes all the time. I never know what combination is going to be THE ONE that I didn’t know I needed.
Which isn’t to say that I never make recipes again. Of course I do! Everyone has favorites they return to depending on their mood and the season. And I can already tell that this salad is going to make its way into my rotation of favorite green bean salads, along with my Fried Almond and Goat Cheese Green Bean Salad and my Green Bean Salad Nicoise.
I generally mix it up by trying a new side with a familiar main or a new main with a favorite salad. Or make something I love for dinner, but try something new for dessert. It things interesting and balances the old with the new. Balance is good!
I’m trying to add more balance to my life in general. If you are regular reader, you may have noticed that I have changed to a two post a week schedule instead of my previous three a week. There are few reasons for that.
First, I don’t want to post any recipes that I’m not completely excited about. (Like this awesome salad!!) And that takes time. We eat all the food I cook and we can only eat so much. 🙂 Until recently I was good since I have years of recipes to pull out, but even old favorites sometimes need tune-ups, so it was getting tougher to meet my deadlines.
Second, writing three posts meant I could never seem to get ahead. With two posts, I have them written and scheduled before they are due!
Third, balance! Two posts a week means I have time to take walks, visit with friends, clean the house, spend time with my family. All those things which make like worth living (or at least cleaner). Also, this gives me more time to work on improving this blog and learning new things. Like video! It’s the thing to do now and I need to figure it out.
This doesn’t mean I won’t sometimes have so much yummy food which I have post NOW and do three posts that week, but moving forward it will be two in general.
But that’s enough about that! You’re here for the yummy salad. And you can’t go wrong with tender green beans and perfectly ripe tomatoes tossed with an Italian dressing. Add in my favorite cheese…burrata and my new favorite fun garnish, crispy fried shallots, and you have a salad worth eating.
So, add some balance to your life. Eat more salad, especially this Italian green bean salad, spend more time with family and friends, and totally try frying up some shallots.
– Happy Eating, Annemarie
Italian Green Bean Salad with Burrata and Crispy Shallots
Ingredients
Green Bean Salad
- 2 medium tomatoes, seeded and cut into 1/2 inch dice
- 2 cups green beans, trimmed
- 8 oz burrata cheese
- 1 recipe crispy fried shallots
Homemade Italian Dressing
- 4 tbsp shallot oil (from the fried shallots), or extra virgin olive oil
- 2 tbsp red wine vinegar
- 1 clove garlic, minced
- 1 tsp dried oregano
- 1/2 tsp kosher salt
- 1/4 tsp fresh ground black pepper
Instructions
- Toss the chopped tomatoes with a sprinkle of kosher salt and set them aside.
- Bring a large pot of water to a boil. Add the green beans and cook until just tender, about 4-5 minutes. Drain and then immediately plunge them into cold water to stop the cooking. Drain again and blot dry with a cloth.
- Make the Italian salad dressing and toss it with the green beans and tomatoes.
- Pull out your salad platter and arrange the burrata in the center. Then add the green beans and tomatoes around the burrata. Top with the crispy shallots.
Notes
- Crispy fried shallots
- This salad is all about the green beans. Use the best beans you can find. Though feel free to use other types of fresh beans, like yellow beans or the broad Italian green beans.
- You can substitute a fresh mozzarella for the burrata. Cut the mozzarella into 1/2 dice and toss it with the dressing along with the vegetables.
Thao @ In Good Flavor says
This salad looks so good!! I would even eat it as a main meal when I’m trying to keep it light, although I’m pretty sure that I’d go overboard on the fried shallots (yum!) I’m glad you are adding balance to your life. Blogging is consuming, especially at the rate of 3 times a week. That is such hard pace to keep.
justalittlebitofbacon says
It does make a great main for a lighter evening. Maybe with some bread? And, thanks, twice a week does seem to working out well for me so far. 🙂
Julia says
What a great salad! I love burrata and am jealous coz I can’t buy it around here. I absolutely know what you mean when you say you couldn’t get ahead. Posting 3 times a week is definitely exhausting! I have been trying to find the balance for ages 🙂
justalittlebitofbacon says
Thank you! Finding balance is a process. And I’m sorry you can’t get burrata there. I hope that changes soon. 🙂