Smoked Endive Salad topped with Smoked Ritz Crackers
Endive or “On Deev” or just plain yummy? I'll go with yummy and Endive because no one will say “On Deev” at my house. www.Endive.com sent me a beautiful package of fresh Endive wrapped up in a Valentines bouquet with a bow. Nice touch!
I have eaten Endive served up as little boats full of spreads and such, quite good! Endive is only grown in the USA and that's very close to me in Rio Vista, California. So I am very lucky to have fresh Endive available to me when I have the craving. Did you know that Endive is a year around crop? From www.Endive.com:
“WHAT IS ENDIVE?
Endive is a member of the chicory family, which includes radicchio, escarole and curly endive. It is often called the queen of vegetables and is prized the world over. It has a crisp texture and a sweet, nutty flavor with a pleasantly mild bitterness — great served raw or cooked.
So Special…It's Grown Twice
Endive is one of the most difficult vegetables in the world to grow, requiring a two-step process before it is ready to be enjoyed. The first growth takes about 150 days in the field, where the chicory plant grows from seed into a deep root. Tops of the leafy plant are then cut off, roots dug up, and placed in cold storage, where they enter a dormancy period. As demand necessitates, roots are removed from cold storage for their second growth, which takes 20 to 28 days in dark, cool, and humid forcing rooms, similar to mushroom growing. Thus, endives are available year-round.”
Bet you didn't know that!
Smoked Endive Salad topped with Smoked Ritz Crackers
3 – 6 Endive heads (I used 2 white and 1 red)
10 – 12 Ritz crackers
8oz Feta cheese, crumbled
6 – 8 Kamalata olives, sliced
12 cherry or pearl tomatoes, sliced
Extra virgin olive oil
Pomegranate infused vinegar
I used my Traeger Pellet Smoker to smoke my Endive but you can use what ever you have on hand. The concept is to infuse smoke flavor into the Endive not cook it with smoke. Smoking time should be only 45 minutes or so and the temperature at about 250 degrees F. I placed my Ritz crackers on a sheet of aluminum foil in the smoker also, just for added flavor.
After smoking, slice the Endive on the bias add the remaining ingredients, drizzle with oil and vinegar. Finally crumble the smoked Ritz crackers over the top to add some crunch. Those Kamalata olives add just the right amount of saltiness. The Endives smoky flavor blended so nicely with the feta cheese and smoked Ritz crackers ………. well, they crunched very well!
I think both Mrs. Outdoor Cook and I had three helpings of salad each, it was that good! Give it a try and let me know. Visit www.Endive.com for many more recipes. Now go out and get some Endive for the grill! You just might like it.
Gary
