Grilled Endive Salad with Salted Garlic and Parmesan Crumble

This takeoff on a grilled Caesar salad replaces romaine with two colors of chicory lettuce—pale Belgian endive and scarlet radicchio. Both of these leaves are far more bitter than romaine, elevating the contrapuntal between vegetable, dressing, cheese, and salt.

Ingredients

• 1/3 cup freshly grated Parmigiano-Reggiano cheese

• 1 clove garlic, smashed and minced

• 6 anchovy fillets, minced

• 1 tablespoon brown mustard

• 1 large egg yolk

• 1/2 cup plus 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, divided

• Juice of 1 lemon

• Sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

• Mild vegetable oil, for coating grill grate

• 4 heads Belgian endive, halved lengthwise

• 1 head radicchio, loose leaves removed, quartered through its stem

• 1 teaspoon coarse flake sea salt

Craft Salt Cooking by Mark Bitterman

Directions

Preheat the oven to 400°F. Line a sheet pan with a silicone baking liner or parchment paper.

Make 4 mounds of cheese on the lined pan, evenly spaced. They will each be a heaping tablespoon. Lightly pat each mound so that it is flat on top. Bake until brown and crisp, 8 to 10 minutes. Cool.

Preheat a grill to medium indirect heat (300° to 350°F).

Mash the garlic and anchovy into a paste in a small bowl using the back of a fork. Whisk in the mustard and egg yolk. Whisk in 1/2 cup of the olive oil, a little at a time, to form a thick sauce. Stir in the lemon juice and season with salt and pepper; set aside.

Brush the grill grate and coat with vegetable oil. Coat the pieces of endive and radicchio with the remaining 2 tablespoons of olive oil. Put the endive on the grill grate directly over the fire. Grill for about 1 minute; turn. Add the radicchio and grill for another minute, turning the radicchio after 30 seconds, just until grill marked. Using tongs, transfer the pieces of both lettuces to the cool side of the grill. Paint with half the vinaigrette, getting dressing down in between the leaves. Cover the grill and cook for 2 minutes, until the ends of the endive halves wilt. Put the endives and radicchio on a platter. Dress with the remaining vinaigrette. Crumble the cheese crisps over the top and finish with a sprinkling of flake salt.

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Reprinted with permission from Bitterman's Craft Salt Cooking by Mark Bitterman (Copyright 2016, Andrews McMeel Publishing)