Mixed Chicories with Shaved Fennel, Pickled Red Onions, Apple, Cranberries and Walnuts

Total Time
35 Mins
Serves
8
Meal
Dinner Lunch
Course
Appetizers Side

Total Time

Prep Time
20 Mins
Cook Time
15 Mins
Total Time
35 Mins

Nutrition

Calories
267 cal
Total Fat
17 g
Polyunsaturated Fat
5 g
Cholesterol
0 mg
Sodium
242 mg
Carbohydrates
29 g
Dietary Fiber
5 g
Protein
3 g

Ingredients

  • 1 head frisee, small
  • 1 head radicchio, small
  • 1 head Belgian endive, small
  • 1 bulb fennel, small (you can save some of the fronds for garnish)
  • 1 apple, tart-sweet, thinly sliced
  • 1/2 cup cranberries, dried
  • Lemon Vinaigrette (recipe follows)
  • Pickled Red Onions (recipe follows)
  • 1/3 cup California walnuts, lightly toasted, chopped
  • 1 head little gem or oak leaf lettuce, small

Note: You may replace chicories with bagged mixed greens.

Lemon Vinaigrette
  • 1 teaspoon lemon zest, finely grated
  • 2 tablespoons shallot, finely minced
  • 2 tablespoons lemon juice, fresh
  • 2 tablespoons sherry vinegar or white wine vinegar, high-quality
  • 1 tablespoon maple syrup, pure
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1/3-1/2 cup extra virgin olive oil
Pickled Red Onions
  • 2 red onions (about 1 pound), medium-sized
  • 4 cups water, boiling
Marinade
  • 1/2 cup cider or rice vinegar
  • 1/2 cup water
  • 2 tablespoons honey or sugar
  • 1/4 teaspoon salt
  • 1 teaspoon peppercorns
  • 1/2 teaspoon cloves, whole (optional)

Preparation

  1. Wash the lettuce and chicories, and spin until very dry. Break the lettuce and frisee into bite-sized pieces. The radicchio and endive can be hand-broken or cut into bite-sized pieces with a sharp knife. Add the apple and cranberries and toss all of these together in a generous-sized salad bowl, adding just enough of the vinaigrette to lightly coat all the leaves.
  2. Use a mandolin on the thinnest setting or a very sharp knife to shave the fennel into paper-thin slices. Place the slices in a medium-sized bowl, and add a tablespoon or two of the Lemon Vinaigrette. Toss until the fennel is coated.
  3. Divide the dressed lettuce and chicories onto 6 or 8 serving plates, arranging the leaves into nice beds. Add a small pile of the fennel on top, and then stack on a small layer of Pickled Red Onions. Decorate each place with a fan of thinly sliced apple, sprinkle with cranberries and walnuts. Serve immediately.
Lemon Vinaigrette
  1. Combine all ingredients except the olive oil in a medium-small bowl. Use a fork or small whisk to beat until combined, then continue beating while you drizzle in the olive oil in a steady stream. Keep whisking until all the olive oil is incorporated. Taste to adjust salt, maple syrup and oil. Store in a jar with a tight-fitting lid until time to serve.
Pickled Red Onions

Red onions have a secret talent: they turn a beautiful, bright shade of purplish-pink when doused with hot water and then marinated, and in this pickled state, they stay crunchy and delicious seemingly forever.

Serve Pickled Red Onions in every imaginable context: Next to or over hot or cold bean and grain dishes, with (or in) salads or sandwiches, on toast or crackers, with hors d’oeuvres–you name it.

  1. Peel the onions and slice them as thin as you possibly can. Transfer them to a medium-sized bowl.
  2. Pour the boiling water into the bowl, and let the onions soak in the boiling water for 5 minutes. Drain thoroughly in a colander.
  3. While the onions sit in the colander, combine the marinade ingredients in the same bowl, and mix well. Stir in the onions, and let them sit in the marinade for about 10 minutes.
  4. Transfer the onions with all the liquid to a jar with a tight-fitting lid, and chill until very cold. This will keep in the refrigerator for weeks.