It’s a salad you can eat with your hands. My mom calls these “little boats.” I call them a perfect party food. Bursting with fresh flavor, Endive with Blue Cheese, Orange & Walnuts makes a perfect addition to a cocktail or dinner party. Besides offering a lighter option to the usual cheese and crackers, it’s a great way to serve the salad to guests while you’re still working on dinner.
Fresh orange, honey-toasted walnuts and blue cheese sit on a Belgian endive leaf, drizzled with a balsamic-orange reduction and sprinkled with fresh chives and salt and pepper.
These became a staple at Husband’s annual Christmas party that we hosted for years. They’ve been so popular that a caterer I work with asked for the recipe. {I traded her for another home-run appetizer recipe.}
- ⅓ cup coarsely chopped walnuts
- 2 tablespoons honey, divided
- cooking spray
- ¼ cup balsamic vinegar
- 3 tablespoons orange juice
- 16 belgian endive leaves (about 2 heads)
- ⅓ cup (1½ ounces) crumbled blue cheese
- 16 small oranges sections (about 2 navel oranges)
- 1 tablespoon minced fresh chives
- ¼ teaspoon cracked black pepper
- Preheat oven to 350¡. Combine walnuts and 1 tablespoon honey; spread on a baking sheet coated with cooking spray. Bake at 350¡ for 10 minutes, stirring after 5 minutes.
- Combine 1 tablespoon honey, vinegar, and orange juice in a small saucepan. Bring mixture to a boil over high heat, and cook until reduced to 3 tablespoons (about 5 minutes).
- Fill each endive leaf with 1 orange section. Top each section with 1 teaspoon cheese and 1 teaspoon walnuts; arrange on a plate. Drizzle the vinegar mixture evenly over leaves, and sprinkle evenly with chives and pepper.
Serving these at a cocktail party? Let your guests know what they’re eating with these apped’oeuvre place cards.
Error thrown
Call to undefined function ereg()