ABRAMS Dinner Party: What's Gabby Cooking: Take It Easy...Featuring Marinated Burrata with Crostini #WhatsGabyCooking #quickappetizer #easyholidayentertaining #abramsdinnerparty

The next book being featured by the ABRAMS Dinner Party blogging group is Gaby Dalkin's What's Gabby Cooking: Take It Easy...Recipes for Zero Stress Deliciousness. Dalkin is the popular author of the go-to food and lifestyle website What's Gaby Cooking, founded in 2009. In her latest book, Dalkin returns with her signature approach: enjoy life by focusing on eating the foods you truly love! This time around, she's emphasizing a streamlined no-fuss attitude. What's Gaby Cooking: Take It Easy has 100 delicious, stress-free recipes that are ideally suited for a range of occasions. What better approach for the hectic holiday season! We all need a quick, simple appetizer we can whip for for impromptu celebrations and last-minute party invitations. Gaby's super simple Marinated Burrata with Crostini is a perfect choice!

You can literally make this simple appetizer in 10 minutes or less, and it features only FIVE simple ingredients! It looks fabulous on a serving platter. If you've never eaten burrata, it's an Italian cow milk cheese that's a ball of fresh mozzarella on the outside...and filled with cream and curds. It's as divine as it sounds, and this recipe is a great reason to give it a try! This cheese platter can also include your favorite extras to make an elegant snacking plate. I added sliced prosciutto and a bowl of olives on the side. A stress-free, elegant appetizer. Think of it as the culinary equivalent of a little black dress!

Marinated Burrata with Crostini

from What's Gaby Cooking: Take It Easy

Ingredients:

• 1/3 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 3 cloves garlic, finely chopped OR grated
• Pinch crushed red pepper
• Two 8-ounce balls Burrata cheese
• Fresh basil for garnish

To serve:

• Ciabatta crostini
• Thinly sliced prosciutto
• Assorted pitted olives

Directions:

Step 1: In a small non-stick skillet, heat the oil over Low heat. Add the garlic and crushed red pepper flakes. Sauté ingredients for 45 seconds to make a garlic-infused oil. Remove pan from heat and let cool completely.

Step 2: While the oil mixture cools, assemble your cheese display. Transfer whole balls of burrata to a decorative serving platter. Once the oil has cooled, drizzle it on top of the cheese. Top with chopped basil and serve with toasted crostini...and any other additions you choose to include.

That's it! A few simple ingredients arranged in an eye-catching display. To serve my version of this cheese platter, we spread some of the creamy burrata on warm toasted crostini and topped with slices of savory prosciutto. 

With Christmas and New Year's Eve on the horizon, this streamlined appetizer is perfect to have in your back pocket. Everyone who tasted it love it...and had no clue how simple it was to whip up. That's a holiday win-win, friends!

Disclosure: I received a copy of What's Gaby Cooking: Take It Easy as part of the ABRAMS Publishing Dinner Party blogging group. All opinions shared are solely my own.