Thanksgiving: Endives, Apples and Grapes on the Side

Thanksgiving: Endives, Apples and Grapes on the Side

ENDIVES, APPLES AND GRAPES

From Around My French Table

Makes 4 starter or side-dish servings or 2 main-course servings

2 plump endives, trimmed

1 tart-sweet apple, such as Fuji or Gala

1½ tablespoons salted butter (if you can find butter with sea salt crystals, use it)

4 small clusters white or green grapes (in France, I like to use Muscat grapes)

4 small rosemary sprigs

Salt, preferably fleur de sel, and freshly ground pepper

Cut the endives lengthwise in half. Cut the apple into quarters and remove the core. Peel off a thin strip of skin down the center of each quarter.

Put a large skillet (nonstick is best) over low heat and toss in the butter. When it’s melted, put the endive into the pan cut side down and the apples skin side up. Add the grapes, scatter over the rosemary, and cook, undisturbed, for 20 minutes, at which point the underside of the endives will have caramelized and the apples and grapes will be soft and perhaps browned. Gently turn everything over, baste with any liquid in the pan, and cook for 20 minutes more.

Transfer the ingredients to a warm serving platter or to individual plates and, using a sturdy wooden or silicone spoon, scrape up the cooking sugars sticking to the bottom of the pan. You might want to pour a few spoonfuls of water into the pan to help you nab the sugars and make a spare amount of sauce. Season the endive with salt and pepper, spoon over the jus, and serve.

Serving

You can serve this as a first course or as a side dish to chicken or fish that isn’t heavily sauced; something grilled would be just right. It is also a great main course (if you want to double the recipe, make it in two skillets) followed by bread and cheese — think blue cheese.

Storing

This really should be served as soon as it’s cooked. I’ve reheated leftovers briefly in the microwave oven, and they’ve been okay, but not nearly as good as they were the day before; endive has a tendency to become more bitter when it’s reheated.

Bonne idée

Thanksgiving Squash and Apples. A squash or pumpkin rendition is splendid for the holidays. Here’s the combination I make most often: 4 thin (1- to 1½-inch-thick) wedges pumpkin or squash (I use Red Kuri squash, which doesn’t need to be peeled), 12 to 16 cooked chestnuts (I use jarred), 1 apple (or pear), 4 clusters grapes, and sprigs of rosemary, thyme, or, best of all, sage for the herb. You can drizzle warm maple syrup over this — and it’s also good topped with toasted pecans, with a spoonful of a cranberry-orange relish alongside.