The first time I read the word “endive” was out of a fancy cookbook that my mother had bought me as a gift. I was 13, maybe 14. It was Thanksgiving, and I wanted to make all of those fancy dishes. I wanted an elegant dinner filled with bubbly champagne and crystal and fancy food. It took a few trips before I found those little endives, and I proudly assembled my fancy salad. Then… I tasted a leaf and declared it “sour” and “gross” before proceeding to bake the stinkiest gruyere potato gratin (which I also deemed “gross”). My 14 year old self felt that the fancy food was a flop, but it’s been a decade since I cooked my first Thanksgiving, and I think my palate has matured with me too.

This year, I went for some last minute Thanksgiving bits with my mother and I spotted the tightly leafed buds once more. I purchased two of them and fixed a simple but beautiful salad. It was simple and elegant – the kind of pretty salad that my 14 year old self would have loved. This time, I garnished the salad with a bit of homemade pomegranate dressing (easy peasy recipe below)

Endive and Grapefruit Salad 

• 2 Belgian Endives, thinly sliced
• 1 bunch of mint, leaves removed and thinly sliced
• 2 ruby red grapefruits, peeled and membrane removed (alternatively, you could supreme the citrus)

1. After thinly slicing the endive and mint, toss gently together with the grapefruit. I chose to peel the fruit out of the membrane and crumble the slices so the grapefruit was distributed. Alternatively, for the presentation conscious, you could supreme the grapefruit and place the slices in an endive leaf with mint garnish.
2. Keep chilled until ready to serve. Toss gently with dressing just before serving.

Pomegranate Dressing (Kaprise Kitchen)

• 1/2 cup of pomegranate seeds
• 2 spray free limes
• 1/2 teaspoon of dijon mustard
• 1/2 teaspoon of good olive oil

1. In a small bowl, crush the pomegranate seeds until the juice is released.
2. In the same bowl, squeeze the limes until all of the juice is released (you may also zest a little of the limes into the dressing if you want a punchier lime taste)
3. Strain the liquid (to remove the pomegranate seeds and lime seeds) into a small jar
4. Add the mustard and oil, and shake until the dressing is well combined. Add more mustard if you like.