Summary
Escarole, the chicory that takes a backseat to Belgian endive, has a mild flavor yet holds up great in a salad. Here it’s tossed with piquillo peppers, orange juice, and olive oil and topped with toasts for a Spanish-inspired side salad. This makes for an excellent starter to a Spanish dish such as our paella recipe.
This recipe was featured as part of our Cooking with Winter Ingredients photo gallery.
Ingredients
For the toasts:
- 12 (1/2-inch-thick) slices sweet baguette
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 ripe medium Roma tomato, halved
- 2 1/2 ounces blue cheese, such as Gorgonzola, Roquefort, or Cabrales
For the salad:
- 1/2 cup jarred piquillo peppers, coarsely chopped
- 2 tablespoons freshly squeezed orange juice (from 1 medium orange)
- 2 tablespoons red wine vinegar
- 1 1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
- 1/2 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper
- 1/2 teaspoon finely grated orange zest
- 1 tablespoon olive oil
- 1 large head escarole, washed, dried, and torn into bite-size pieces