Endive Spears with Sweet Potato & Chives

Love this idea I adapted from a recipe in Fine Cooking magazine. You may remember a decade or more of pre-dinner nibbles served in endive leaves . In many years worth of variations, I don’t ever remember seeing one with sweet potatoes – but what a great combination of creamy, sweet sweet potatoes with the slightly bitter endive leaves.

Ingredients:

2 tablespoons olive oil 1 small sweet potato, peeled and cut into 1/4-inch dice (about 1-1/2 cups) Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper 3 Tbs. thinly sliced fresh chives, divided 2 medium heads Belgian endive 1/4 cup crème fraiche, sour cream or yogurt

Preparation:

Warm the olive oil over medium heat. Add the sweet potato and 1/4 tsp. each salt and pepper. Cook, stirring, until the sweet potato is tender, 6 to 8 minutes. Stir in 2 Tbs. of the chives and season with more salt and pepper to taste. Let cool for a couple of minutes.

Slice the bottom 1/2 inch off the endives so some of the outer leaves break free. Cut another 1/2 inch off and break some more leaves free. Keep going until all the larger leaves are free. (You should have about 20.) If you like, trim the leaves so they’re all the same length. Save the remaining endive for a salad.

Set the endive leaves on a large platter. Spoon the sweet potato mixture near the base of the leaves. Top each with a dollop of the crème fraiche, sour cream or yogurt and then sprinkle with the remaining chives. Serve immediately or let sit for up to 20 minutes before serving.

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