A wintery spin on crudités, this quick and easy whipped feta dip with lemon and red pepper flakes is served alongside a warm roasted vegetable platter with broccoli, carrots, purple cauliflower, endive, hakurei turnips, mushrooms, and radicchio. Serve as an appetizer, party snack, or as part of a snacky winter meal.
belgian endive salad with pear and bacon
Belgian endive is actually a member of the daisy family and is completely kept from sunlight as it grows to keep the leaves from turning green or opening up. Otherwise they are too bitter to eat. I always wonder about foods like that where there is some really complicated way of growing them. Like who was the first person who was like “Ugh, this tastes terrible! Maybe if I grew it in the absence of sunlight, though.”
However that person thought it up, I’m glad they did. Belgian endive is one of my favorite vegetables and this salad is one of the best ways to enjoy it. Sweet pears and rich bacon are the perfect match for the mild bitterness of the endive, and the creamy yogurt dressing with a hint of acidity ties it all together. While we had this for dinner, I can also imagine it as part of an early spring brunch. [Read more…]