Brussels Endive Salad

A few weeks ago I read in a Dutch newspaper that there are fewer and fewer Brussels endive growers in Europe. Too bad because the possibilities are endless. One of the reasons is that consumption is declining and many children do not like the bitter taste of these vegetables.

When we were kids, we used to get a spoonful of applesauce from apples from our own garden over the vegetables when we did not like them. Of course you can put applesauce over Brussels endive but it can be tastier. In this recipe I have chosen raspberries but these can be easily replaced by orange. The raspberry puree in the dressing is replaced by orange juice or replace raspberries by pomegranate you can use for the dressing a little grenadine syrup and no maple syrup, or ..... Well, use your imagination, almost every sort of fruit can be used. Many children like this variety of Brussels endive. The recipe is for one adult or two children.

1 Brussels endive

1/2 Apple

85 gr. Raspberries ( half a box)

Lemon juice

Dark unsweetened chocolate

75 gr. Crème fraîche

1/2 tablespoon olive oil

Salt and pepper to taste

1/2 tablespoon (or 1 if you like it sweeter) maple syrup

Roasted Pine nuts

Knife

Sieve

Cutting board

Spoon

5 small bowls for the ingredients

1 bowl for mixing the salad

Grater

Short rinse half a box of raspberries in cold water, use a sieve and put them aside.

Peel the apple, remove the core. Slice half the apple in thin slices and cut the slices in half. Sprinkle a little lemon juice over the apple slices to prevent them from discoloring. Set aside.

Rinse the Brussels endive, dry and cut into thin slice, sprinkle a little lemon juice to prevent from discoloring. Set aside.

Grate the chocolate and set aside.

Put 75 g. of crème fraîche, half a tablespoon of olive oil, half a table spoon (or one if you like it sweeter) maple syrup in a bowl, and mix. Put 5 or 6 raspberries in a sieve and mash them over the sauce. Mix sauce and raspberries to a smooth whole. If you put the sauce through a sieve, you get a nice airy and creamy sauce.

Take a bowl and put some Brussels endive on the bottom, than some apple and raspberries. Repeat till you have used all the Brussels endive, apple and raspberries but save 3 raspberries for on top. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper and the roasted pine nuts on the last layer and spoon the dressing on top. Finish with the grated unsweetened dark chocolate and the saved raspberries.

Just make Brussels endive the traditional way. Cook the Brussels endive for 3 or 4 minutes in water with a little salt. Remove the brussels endive from the water and roll in ham and cheese. Put in the oven until the cheese has a nice crust or until the cheese has just melted, depending on the taste. Sprinkle a pinch of salt and pepper on top.