A Study of Belgian Endive

I really like Belgian endive. I don't think I ate it as a kid. In fact, I don't remember eating much of any kind of lettuce as a kid other than iceberg. I'm not sure when the first time was that I tried Belgian endive, but like much of my culinary experiences, it probably was in one of the several restaurants that I worked in or supervised.

Endive used to be something of an exotic lettuce and I'm reasonably sure I saw little of it in neighborhood grocery stores until the '90s. Now, of course, it is generally readily available in my grocer's produce section. Still, it is an elegant vegetable, which is perhaps why at least two of the following recipes were created specifically for a New Year's Eve celebration dinner.

Belgian endive, also known as French endive and witloof, or white leaf, is a leafy lettuce that looks like a thin cylinder of tight, pale green leaves. It is somewhat unusual in that it is not grown from seed or seedlings directly in the soil. Instead, it is cultivated by forcing a second growth from the cut roots of chicory plants. Chicory is also known as curly endive, which is a different lettuce entirely.

Credit for development of the Belgian endive is given to a Belgian botanist by the name of Brézier, who developed the “Brussels endive” from a coffee chicory root in 1846.

The process of growing Belgian endive is labor-intensive as it involves several stages, which accounts for the relatively high expense of this noble lettuce.

A lot of people shun Belgian endive because it has a reputation for bitterness.  Frankly, that has never bothered me because I use the bitterness of the lettuce to offset the sweetness or savoriness of other flavors.  Properly balanced, the bitterness works for the dish, not against it, which in essence, is what the creative culinary arts are all about.  Or, at least that is true in my kitchen.

Belgian endive's versatility is unparalleled in the lettuce world. Excellent in a salad, it stands up and marries well with other bold flavors like Roquefort cheese, walnuts, pears and balsamic vinegar. It can be braised or baked like a vegetable, and grilled like a steak. It can be used as a substitute for crackers and toast points to deliver all manner of appetizers and spreads.

One thing to consider in the preparation of Belgian endive is that the leaves will oxidize and turn slightly brown very quickly after having been removed from the root stem. While this will not impair the taste, it does make the leaves take on an unappetizing appearance. It is therefore best to get the leaves into a cold water bath of the juice of 1/2 lemon and 2-3 cups of very cold water before proceeding with the preparation of the dish. Otherwise, if you are using the endive in a salad, get the dressing on the leaves pretty quickly after separating them. The oil in the dressing will also prevent the air from oxidizing the greens.

Some of the recipes below were created along with salad dressings that I have already posted in the Salad Dressing Repository, but are given here as the entire recipe, not merely the dressing.

As I have come to love this delicious and complex lettuce, I have created or collected several Belgian endive recipes, and so decided to post them in a single entry of Kitchen Tapestry.

Broiled Pear, Endive, Gorgonzola Salad with Port Wine Dressing

There are about a million pear and endive salad variations on the Internet.  After spending a day researching them, I came up with my own version that included a port wine dressing.  Although my recipe below calls for a simple, inexpensive Tawney port wine, I actually used a premium sipping port in this recipe, which I created for a private, cozy New Year's Eve celebration to usher in 2010.

Ingredients for the salad
3 tbsp pecans, rough chopped
4 heads Belgian endive
1 pear, cored and sliced (like, Bosc or Bartlett)
2 green onions, chopped
2-3 oz Gorgonzola cheese, crumbled
non-stick cooking spray (like, Pam)

Ingredients for the dressing
1 tsp shallots, minced
3 tbsp orange juice
2 tbsp Tawney port wine
3 tbsp champagne vinegar
1 egg yolk
1 pinch Coleman's powdered mustard
1 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
6 tbsp olive oil

The Recipe
On a sheet pan or cookie sheet, spray with non-stick spray, and lay out the slices of pear in an even layer. Under a high-heat broiler, place the sheet pan about six inches from the heat. Broil the pear slices until they just begin to caramelize and turn brown. This will happen quickly depending on your oven, so don't take your eyes off of them. Turn over and repeat, then remove from the broiler and allow to cool, about five minutes.

In a food processor, combine the chopped shallots, orange juice, port wine, vinegar, the Coleman's mustard and black pepper and pulse to mix well. Add the egg yolk and pulse for another few seconds. Then, while the processor is spinning, slowly add the olive oil. This will probably yield more dressing than you need for the salad, depending on your taste.

Remove the tough stem stalk at the base of the endive and slice the lettuce width-wise into 1/2 inch rings. Add the lettuce to the chopped green onion and sliced pears in a large salad bowl.

Toss the dressing with the pear and greens, then add the Gorgonzola and half the pecans and toss some more. After plating, top with the remaining rough chopped pecans.

Belgian Endive Herb Cheese Canapé

A canapé is a fancy French word for a small, prepared and usually decorative food, held in the fingers and often eaten in one bite. It is an appetizer or hors d'oeuvre, but not all hors d'oeuvres are canapés. It is pronounced can-eh-pay, by the way, not can-of-peas, which is an old Three Stooges joke. If you didn't get it, then you are younger than 50.

This recipe was researched specifically for a New Year's Eve dinner planned to usher in 1999, and came from a now defunct website called the Digital Chef. I still have the printout from this website, computer dated 12/30/98. The domain today is for sale, so sadly, he couldn't make a go of it. It was a well laid-out site, too, and allegedly was in association with the prestigious Culinary Institute of America, otherwise known as the CIA located in Hyde Park, New York. Sorry to see it crashed and burned as many of the early pioneers of the world wide web have since the mid-90's.

I augmented Digital Chef's original recipe with the inclusion of what is referred to in Mediterranean cooking as Fines Herbs. This is a combination of parsley, chives, tarragon and chervil. You can buy these herb dried individually, and mix them up yourself. Or you can usually find this herb blend in the spice section of your local grocer. Or, to make this recipe a premium edition, use fresh herbs, then mince and blend them together. I used dried Fines Herb on this occasion and it worked out just fine. We enjoyed these while sipping champagne and preparing the rest of our celebratory dinner.

Ingredients
1 cup cream cheese, softened (like, Kraft Philadelphia)
1/2 tsp finely minced garlic
juice of 1 lemon
1 tbsp Fines Herbs
1/2 tsp freshly cracked black pepper
salt to taste
4-5 heads Belgian endive
1/4 c red bell pepper, finely minced
2 tbsp flat parsley leaves (sometimes referred to as Italian Parsley)

The Recipe
Thoroughly combine the cream cheese, garlic, 1/2 of the lemon juice, Fines Herbs, salt and pepper in a mixing bowl. Cover and reserve at room temperature for at least a half-hour, which will allow the mixture to further soften and the flavor of the dried herbs to "open."

In a bowl large enough to accommodate the endive leaves, add the remaining lemon juice to 2-3 cups of very cold water. Trim the endive root and separate the leaves, placing them into the cold lemon water bath. This will help prevent the endive leaves from oxidizing and turning brown while waiting on a serving platter to be eaten.

Drying each leaf with a paper towel, scoop or spoon the cheese mixture onto the root end of each leaf. Garnish with the minced red bell pepper and one flat parsley leaf. Return to the refrigerator and chill for 20-30 minutes before serving. These go extremely will with a Brut or Extra Dry Champagne.

Watercress, Apple and Endive Salad with Apple Cider Dressing

This is a great salad anytime, but really good as a Fall treat when the apple varieties are plentiful. I generally go with a Granny Smith apple because its texture is firm and crunchy. Other varieties of apples, like Gala and Red Delicious have a texture that is slightly mealy, and will not stand up well to the assault and acidity of lemon juice and vinegar.

Ingredients for the salad
4-5 heads Belgian endive
1 cup watercress, stems removed, washed and rough chopped
2 green onions chopped
2 apples (like, Granny Smith)
juice of 1/2 lemon

Ingredients for the dressing
1 small shallot, finely minced
1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
6 oz natural (no sugar added) apple sauce (like, Mott's single-serving)
1 tsp dried orange peel
1 tbsp Dijon mustard
1 packet Splenda (or 1 tbsp honey)
1 tbsp lemon juice
salt & pepper to taste
1/4 cup canola oil

The Recipes
Put 2-3 cups of very cold water into a large bowl and add the juice of 1/2 lemon. Peel and core the apples and cut them into small wedges, placing them into the cold lemon water bath. Core the endive and remove the leaves, and also place them in the cold lemon bath until ready to use.

Pulse the shallots with the vinegar in a food processor until the shallots almost liquify, then add the apple sauce, dried orange peel, mustard, pepper, lemon juice and Splenda or honey and blend well. While the processor is spinning, add the oil until emulsified. Test for seasoning and add salt if needed.

Drain the apples and endive well and blot with paper towels. Spin all in a salad spinner to remove all moisture. Combine with the watercress and green onion in a large salad bowl and toss with the apple cider dressing.

Endive & Bacon au Gratin

When I first made this dish, it was a huge disappointment. I used the basis of a similar recipe on the Epicurious website, a reprint from an October 2000 recipe that originally appeared in Bon Appétit magazine, called Baked Endive with Pancetta and Parmesan Cheese. That recipe called for you to parboil the endive before baking it, which was a real culinary faux pas on their part. Endive is delicate and just doesn't need parboiling before baking. Doing so caused the dish to become watery and the endive limp. I instinctively knew I was in trouble with this recipe when the title gives "Parmesan" cheese as a key ingredient, when in fact, the recipe called for three times the amount of Gruyère cheese.

I re-tooled this recipe and use thick sliced bacon rather than Pancetta, which isn't readily available in these parts.

Ingredients
8 small heads Belgian endive
1/2 lb thick sliced bacon
3 tbsp butter
3 tbsp all purpose flour
2 1/2 cups whole milk
1/4 tsp ground nutmeg
1 cup Gruyère cheese, grated
1/3 cup seasoned breadcrumbs (like, Old London or Progresso)
1/3 cup Parmesan cheese, freshly grated (not the Kraft green can)
salt & pepper to taste

The Recipe
Preheat oven to 375°F. Butter a glass baking dish (11 x 7 or thereabouts).

Cut the thick sliced bacon into cubes and saute in a skillet over medium heat until crisp, about 6-8 minutes. Drain well on paper towels until ready to use in the recipe.

Melt the butter in a medium saucepan over medium-low heat. Add the flour and whisk for two minutes until a roux has formed. Gradually whisk in the milk.

Bring the milk mixture to a soft boil, whisking until the sauce is smooth. Add the nutmeg and reduce heat to medium and simmer until sauce thickens, stirring often, about 15 minutes.

Mix in the Gruyère cheese, bacon and pepper. Test for salt. The bacon may add enough salt to the dish. Allow the cheese to melt into the sauce, whisking occasionally until is is smooth and creamy.

Core the endive and remove the leaves.

Pour 1/3 of the sauce into the prepared baking dish. Arrange endive atop sauce. Spoon remaining sauce over. Sprinkle with the breadcrumbs and Parmesan cheese.

Bake until endive is tender and the dish is brown and bubbly, about 25 minutes.

Grilled Endive with Creamy Tarragon Mustard Dressing

No one ever heard of putting lettuce on a grill before the trendy, excessive 80's when it became something of a culinary rage. Now, it's standard fare and something that I cannot live without during the long grilling season where I live. I've learned that just about any vegetable (and fruit, too, for that matter) can be thrown on a grill, coated with a simple vinaigrette, and tended to carefully to get the right amount of charring without damaging the product. Bell peppers, mushrooms, zucchini, radicchio and of course, Belgian endive routinely find their way onto my grill. The dressing I use was not originally intended to go with grilled vegetables, but it is perfect for the delicious charred, slightly bitter taste of a grilled endive. Originally, this dressing recipe came from the Silver Palate Cookbook printed in 1979.

Ingredients for the endive
4 medium heads of Belgian endive
1/4 cup olive oil
2 tbsp champagne vinegar
juice of 1/2 lemon
salt & freshly ground black pepper

Ingredients for the dressing
1 whole egg
2 egg yolks
1/3 cup Dijon mustard
1/4 cup tarragon vinegar
1 tsp dried tarragon leaves
salt & pepper to taste
1 cup olive oil
1 cup vegetable oil

The Recipes
Cut the four endive in half lengthwise. Do not remove the root stem.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the vinegar, lemon juice, olive oil, salt and pepper. Toss in the endive and coat them thoroughly in the vinaigrette.

In a blender or food processor add the egg, egg yolks, mustard, vinegar, tarragon, salt & pepper and spin for one minute. Slowly add the oils while the processor is spinning. The dressing will emulsify to the consistency of a mayonnaise. Remember, this dressing has fresh eggs, and so should be kept refrigerated. It is best if made ahead of time and allowed to chill for at least an hour before serving.  This recipe will give you much more dressing than you will need for this dish alone.  It can be kept three weeks refrigerated.

Place the endive cut side down, over a gas grill on medium heat, or about ten inches away from the coals on a charcoal grill. Cook five to seven minutes, being sure to move the lettuce away from any flare ups. You want a bit of char and grill marks to be apparent, but you do not want the lettuce to burn.

Turn over and cook another five minutes. The lettuce should be slightly limp and thoroughly cooked through. Add a little more vinaigrette to the cooking endive while on the grill if it gets dry and needs a little boost.

Serve warm with the chilled tarragon mustard dressing on the side.

Prosciutto and Endive Salad with Parmesan Vinaigrette

You can't get real Italian prosciutto in this country, not legally, anyway. The USDA banned it because of concerns that the ham is dry cured and uncooked. There are Italian exports of so-called prosciutto that is salt cured, much like "country ham" is in this country, but it is not true prosciutto. No matter, it's still pretty good and works well with this recipe.

I also use the roasted red bell peppers that you can buy from the grocer in a jar preserved in water. Don't confuse this with roasted red bell pepper that are preserved in olive oil.

Ingredients for the salad
4 heads Belgium Endive
juice of 1/2 lemon
2-4 fire roasted red bell pepper slices, diced
2 green onions, chopped
3 tbsp pine nuts
4 oz prosciutto, julienne, plus two whole slices for garnish
4 oz long, thin fresh Parmesan cheese shavings

Ingredients for the dressing
2 tbsp Dijon mustard
1/3 cup red wine vinegar
1/2 cup lemon juice
1/4 tsp Morton Nature's Seasonings
1/2 tsp Splenda (or honey)
1/4 cup grated Parmesan cheese (like, the Kraft green can)
 pinch of salt
1/2 cup olive oil

The Recipes
Core the Belgian endive and separate the leaves, and place in a salad bowl with the lemon juice. Toss to coat.

Add the diced roasted red bell pepper, julienne of prosciutto and the chopped green onions.

In a mixing bowl, whisk together the vinegar, mustard, lemon juice, Nature's Seasonings, Splenda or honey and the salt & pepper. Add the grated Parmesan cheese and whisk again. Then, slowly whisk in the olive oil until an emulsion occurs.

If the pine nuts are roasted, fine. If not, roast them in an un-greased pie pan for ten minutes in a pre-heated 350-degree oven.

Toss the greens, prosciutto and red bell pepper in the dressing. Arrange on salad plates and then top with the pine nuts and long, thin savings of the fresh Parmesan cheese. Serve with the whole slice of prosciutto on the side as an additional garnish.