Maple My Endive, Apples, Blue Cheese and Candied Hazelnuts Salad

Ingredients

• 3 endives, sliced into rounds
• 1 apple, sliced into thin wedges (I used a Honeycrisp)
• 1 tablespoons of chopped chives
• 3 ounces hazelnut halves, candied or toasted
• 1/4 pound of blue cheese, crumbled
• Recipe for Maple Vinaigrette
• Recipe for Fast Candied Nuts

Directions

1. In a medium bowl, toss together endives, apples, chives with 1/4 cup of Maple Vinaigrette or more to taste, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper.
2. Top with blue cheese and nuts.

Notes

You can substitute different nuts. I think the original version had pecans on it and walnuts would be wonderful too.

Ingredients

• 2 tablespoons maple syrup
• 1 teaspoon shallots, minced
• 2 teaspoons Dijon mustard
• 1/4 cup apple cider vinegar
• 2/3 cup of extra-virgin olive oil
• Sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. Mix maple syrup, shallots, mustard vinegar and olive oil in a jar. Put on the lid and shake until the dressing is emulsified. Add salt and pepper to taste.

Notes

Use real maple syrup and the best Dijon mustard you can find. I like Laurent Du Clos brand of mustard. It has a bite!

Ingredients

• 1 cup of unroasted nuts, whole, halved or roughly chopped (they should be even in size)
• 1/2 cup of granulated sugar
• 1/4 cup of water
• flaky sea salt (optional)

Directions

1. Place nuts a cold medium cast iron skillet. Turn on medium heat. Stir nuts constantly with a silicone or heatproof spatula, until they are lightly toasted. The whole nuts will take longer.
2. Sprinkle in the sugar continuing to stir the mixture until it melts and begins to coat the nuts. You will see beads of caramel in the pan. Add the water and continue to stir to coat the nuts and evaporate the water.
3. Stop cooking at desired consistency. Sprinkle with salt, if desired. For cake garnishing, salads or cheeseboards I like the nuts to be drier. For sundaes, I like the nuts to be wetter. Depending on how I’m using them I may add some cream to the nuts to make a creamy, nutty caramel sauce.
4. To further dry the nuts, I put them in a 300 ° oven for 5-10 minutes.

Ingredients

• 16 ounces Greek yogurt
• 2 pounds whole beets, roasted, peeled and cut in wedges
• 1 small red onion, sliced thin
• 1/2 cup mint leaves, chopped
• sea salt
• freshly ground black pepper
• 1 cup Dukkah
• 1/2 cup Preserved Lemon Dressing

Directions

1. To make labne, line a strainer with doubled over cheesecloth and place over a medium sized bowl. Fill with yogurt. Gather the sides of the cheesecloth and bind it with a rubber band. Place in the refrigerator to drain for 2-3 days.
2. Roll the drained labne into 1” balls and roll them in the dukkah. Set aside.
3. Mix beets, red onions and half the mint with Preserved Lemon Dressing, sea salt and freshly ground black pepper to taste and place in a wide bowl or pile on a platter.
4. Top with labne and sprinkle with remaining mint.

Notes

This recipe take several days to make if you’re making the labne from scratch. You can buy labne at a Middle Eastern grocery store. My favorite one is Sahadi’s which is in Brooklyn, by me.

Ingredients

• 1/2 preserved lemon peel and pulp, pureed
• 1/4 cup lemon juice
• 3/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil
• 1/2 teaspoon coriander seeds
• 1/2 teaspoon cumin seeds
• Sea salt
• Freshly ground black pepper

Directions

1. In a mini food processor, fitted with the steel knife, purée the preserved lemon or mince it finely with a knife.
2. In a dry, heavy frying pan toast cumin and coriander seeds until they release a scent, about 1 minute, then remove from the pan and crushed them with a mortar and pestle.
3. Put seeds and reaming ingredients in the food processor and processor to incorporate. Adjust seasoning.

Ingredients

• 1 cup whole almonds, very coarsely chopped
• 1/2 cup pumpkin seeds
• 1/4 cup sesame seeds
• 3 tablespoons whole coriander seeds
• 1 1/2 tablespoons of cumin seeds
• 1 tablespoon fennel seeds
• 1 tablespoon whole peppercorns, crushed slightly if using a food processor
• 1 1/2 teaspoon sea salt
• 1 teaspoon brown mustard seeds
• Healthy pinch of cayenne pepper

Directions

1. Put all ingredients, except cayenne pepper, in heavy skillet and toast gently. Shake the pan or stir spices to toast them evenly, being careful not to burn them. You want them to release their aroma. I used the sesame seeds as an indicator and let them get just light brown since the mixture will continue cooking when you remove it from the heat.
2. Once it is lightly toasted, pour ingredients into the food processor fitted with the steel knife or another dish to stop them cooking. Add cayenne pepper and cool.
3. Process mixture by pulsing until the ingredients are crushed like coarse bread crumbs or grind them with a mortar and pestle.

Notes

To Crust Salmon

Dip salmon fillet in olive oil. Place salmon, skin side down, in a frying pan or baking tray and carefully put the dukkah on top. Drizzle or spray with more olive oil. Put pan over a hot flame or in a 400° oven; cook for 5 minutes and then broil on top until dukkah is browned.

Ingredients

• 8 cups assorted white vegetables (cauliflower is a must if you want to use it decorate that plate as I did)
• Parmesan cheese, shaved
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1 cup creamy Parmesan dressing (recipe follows)

Directions

1. Shred the vegetables, on a mandoline, or slice them thinly.
2. Set aside thinly sliced cauliflower to fan around the plate. (You could use another vegetable, symmetrically cut and displayed, but cauliflower looks best.)
3. Mix the vegetables with kosher salt, white pepper and Creamy Parmesan Dressing.
4. Arrange salad by fanning the cauliflower in a circle and piling remaining salad in the middle of the plate.
5. Garnish with Parmesan cheese.

Notes

I used white vegetables (parsnips, fennel, cauliflower, Jerusalem artichoke and jicama), but you could also use other fruits and veggies like white radishes, endive, kohlrabi, pears, Vidalia onions, cabbage, apples, celeriac, white asparagus, cooked potatoes, daikon radish, white mushrooms, etc.

The white salad stands out beautifully on a dark platter. How gorgeous would it look against thinly sliced red, yellow and purple roasted beets?

Ingredients

• 2 garlic cloves
• 2 tablespoons lemon juice
• 1/4 cup mayonnaise
• 1/4 cup sour cream
• 1/2 cup Parmesan, grated
• 1 teaspoon kosher salt
• 1/2 teaspoon white pepper
• 1/4 cup water

Directions

1. Puree the garlic, salt and lemon juice in a food chopper or blender.
2. Add remaining ingredients and process or blend until smooth.