Chop garlic, add a pinch of salt, then use side of knife to mash cloves to a paste-like consistency. Transfer to medium bowl along with mayonnaise, Dijon, lemon juice and oil. Stir to combine.
To serve: Add feta and celery to bowl with dressing. Stir, then add walnuts and parsley to bowl stirring gently to combine. Trim ends of endive and pluck leaves from head. Add a spoonful of salad on top the cut end of the endive. Arrange on service platter or plate. Garnish with more chopped parsley. Serve immediately.
Belgian Endive Appetizer
Ingredients
4 Belgian endive heads
2 small garlic cloves
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons walnut or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup feta, diced or crumbled to 1/8-inch
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
¼ cup parsley, finely chopped
kosher salt
black pepper
Directions
Chop garlic, add a pinch of salt, then use side of knife to mash cloves to a paste-like consistency. Transfer to medium bowl along with mayonnaise, Dijon, lemon juice and oil. Stir to combine.
To serve: Add feta and celery to bowl with dressing. Stir, then add walnuts and parsley to bowl stirring gently to combine. Trim ends of endive and pluck leaves from head. Add a spoonful of salad on top the cut end of the endive. Arrange on service platter or plate. Garnish with more chopped parsley. Serve immediately.
Belgian Endive Appetizer
5 / 5. 2
A refreshing salad of celery, walnuts and feta cheese, stirred up with a touch of mayo and Dijon served party-ready in Belgian endive leaves…
A simple but beautifully presented party snack with big flavour, try this BELGIAN ENDIVE APPETIZER!
Sometimes in the test kitchen, we luck out and create something perfect on our very first try. In this case, it’s a perfect party snack – this BELGIAN ENDIVE APPETIZER. Expect an easy-to-make recipe that yields memorable flavours. If a delicious party snack or appetizer idea is what you’re after, you’ve come to the right place. This one is so delicious, you and your guests are going to enjoy it as much as we do.
Here are some tips on making this BELGIAN ENDIVE APPETIZER:
INGREDIENTS
Take a look at the ingredients needed to make this three-step endive appetizer. There’s fresh produce: Belgian endive, crunchy celery, garlic, lemon juice and chopped fresh parsley. Then there are the dairy and nut components of feta cheese and walnuts. Finally the classic ingredients for the simple salad dressing: mayonnaise, Dijon mustard and a choice of nut oil. You’ll be able to find everything needed to make this recipe in your local supermarket.
BELGIAN ENDIVE
The star ingredient of this recipe is BELGIAN ENDIVE, a member of the chicory family, distinct as a salad lettuce with slightly bitter leaves. Belgian endive has a small head of cream-coloured, bitter leaves sprouted indoors in the absence of sunlight to prevent the leaves from turning green. Some nutrition facts about endive: it’s a low-calorie and low-carbohydrate vegetable with a high water content and micronutrients such as calcium, potassium, folate, vitamin C, vitamin K, magnesium, vitamin A, and several B vitamins. Using it for this recipe is easy; give it a light rinse under cool water, trim away the bottom and discard. Then pluck the elongated leaves and set to the side until we’re ready to fill them with the salad mixture.
FETA CHEESE
Adding feta cheese to the salad mixture happened completely by accident. The goal was to add flavour, and we loved how this slightly salty cheese paired with the celery and fresh herbs. For best results, dice the feta into small ⅛-inch cubes. If you don’t have a container of feta in the fridge, try the recipe using your favourite cheese like Parmesan, Swiss cheese, Asiago, blue cheese, pecorino or a tasty sharp cheddar.
SALAD FILLING
Crafting this party snack appetizer simply involves spooning a salad mixture onto the Belgian endive leaves. You start with the salad – make sure to watch this VIDEO where we show the instructions on how small we dice the feta cheese and celery. After the chopping, the next step is to craft our easy salad dressing. This involves mashing garlic cloves with a pinch of salt before whisking them together in a small bowl with mayonnaise, Dijon mustard, lemon juice, kosher salt, a sprinkle of black pepper and a drizzle of a favourite nut or vegetable oil.
Before continuing, we do think it important to mention that we made this endive appetizer using walnut oil which enhanced the taste. Of course, you can make the dressing using vegetable oil, canola oil, extra virgin olive oil or avocado oil, but we think a premium nut oil provides more flavour. Try the recipe using walnut oil or a premium hazelnut oil, if you can find it.
NUTS AND FRESH HERBS
Speaking of walnuts, we are so happy we chopped some into this mix along with fresh herbs. Although we used freshly chopped walnuts to pair with the flavour of the walnut oil, feel free to substitute with your favourite chopped nuts like pecans, almonds or hazelnuts. A similar invitation to make this recipe your own with the fresh herbs too. We liked fresh parsley with the feta and walnuts, but feel free to experiment with other herbs such as chives, cilantro, tarragon or mint. Regardless of the type of nuts or herbs you add, remember to delay adding them to the salad until you’re about ready to serve.
HERE’S THE SCOOP
Remember how we said off the top how easy this is to make? Here’s the scoop. Simply spoon a dollop of the salad mixture into the bottom portion of the individual Belgian endive leaves and lay them onto a presentation platter or tray in an attractive pattern. The endive leaf acts like a little serving spoon making this appetizer easy to serve and enjoy.
SERVE
Look at that, instant party snack! And in case you missed it, our BELGIAN ENDIVE APPETIZER is 100% vegetarian and gluten-free. You should feel confident making and serving this tasty party snack throughout the year whenever you need to add something fresh to your menu plans. If this appetizer idea is part of a bigger party plan, pair it with our GARLIC LEMON SHRIMP, these tasty PECAN BLUE CHEESE SHORTBREADS and our famous PROSCIUTTO STUFFED MUSHROOM CAPS. Sounds like a party!
This party snack idea is so tasty, we suggest you PIN the recipe to a favourite appetizer or party snack board on PINTEREST or BOOKMARK this tab for easy access. SHARE it with friends so they can make them too. We’d also appreciate seeing pics of all the delicious dishes you’re making these days. Use #weekendatthecottage when you post those pics on Facebook and Instagram. Thanks!
THE SPICE IS RIGHT!
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Our BELGIAN ENDIVE APPETIZER is perfect for your next party.
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Ingredients
4 Belgian endive heads
2 small garlic cloves
1 tablespoon mayonnaise
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
2 tablespoons walnut or vegetable oil
2 tablespoons fresh lemon juice
1 cup feta, diced or crumbled to 1/8-inch
2 ribs celery, finely chopped
1 cup walnuts, finely chopped
¼ cup parsley, finely chopped
kosher salt
black pepper
Directions
Chop garlic, add a pinch of salt, then use side of knife to mash cloves to a paste-like consistency. Transfer to medium bowl along with mayonnaise, Dijon, lemon juice and oil. Stir to combine.
To serve: Add feta and celery to bowl with dressing. Stir, then add walnuts and parsley to bowl stirring gently to combine. Trim ends of endive and pluck leaves from head. Add a spoonful of salad on top the cut end of the endive. Arrange on service platter or plate. Garnish with more chopped parsley. Serve immediately.
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