What do you like to do with endives?
Endives with oranges and goat cheese salute the end of winter and welcome spring
Do you hear the birds chirping yet? Spring is almost here in Washington, DC—and even if the cherry blossoms aren’t blooming just yet, if you look around and take a deep breath, you can feel the promise of spring in the air.
Today I want to share with you a recipe that I think is a perfect bridge between winter and spring: an endive and citrus salad with goat cheese and oranges. If you’ve never had an endive before, it almost looks like tiny heads of pale romaine lettuce, but the leaves are thicker and more sturdy, and the flavor is a little bitter (in a good way!)—they are relatives of radicchio, which is beautifully bitter. Endives are crunchy and perfect for salads or vegetable side dishes, or braised as an elegant first course—my friend Jacques Pépin makes a beautiful braised endive.
And because it’s the very end of winter (and of course peak citrus season), this recipe includes juicy oranges, whose sweetness balances out the slight bitterness of the endive. Add tangy goat cheese, crunchy toasted almonds and a fragrant, garlicky vinaigrette, and you have an amazing dish, people!
We serve this at Jaleo, and people enjoy it as a tapa or side. At home, you could have it as a simple dinner with a protein, or as a side for something a little more involved. Either way, the bright flavors and textures will bring you back from a deep winter slumber. Open up your windows and maybe a bottle of white wine (I love Verdejo, but also…ask Kara what her favorite is!!!), and remember that after the darkness of winter…things start coming back to life.
Also, don’t forget! On Saturday at 11am ET, I will have a conversation with Ruth Rogers of London’s River Café as part of the first Grubstack, a virtual food festival. Tune in to listen in real time…click here to read more!
And now…endives!
Endibias con queso de cabra y naranjas
Endives with goat cheese and oranges
Serves 4