Bright, citrusy, and beautifully layered, this vibrant endive salad with blood orange vinaigrette is a showstopper in both flavor and presentation.

—Recipes by Chef Steph

INGREDIENTS

• For the Vinaigrette
  • 1 cup blood orange juice (from 3 or 4 blood oranges)
  • ½ tsp. Dijon mustard
  • 2 tbsp. Red wine or Champagne vinegar
  • 1 tbsp. honey
  • 1 tbsp. minced fresh thyme
  • 1 tbsp. minced shallot
  • ⅓ cup canola oil
• For the Salad
  • 2 heads red endive, separated into spears
  • 2 heads Belgian endive, separated into spears
  • Salt and pepper, to taste
  • 3 golf-ball-sized beets (I recommend a mix of golden, red, and candy-striped), sliced thin
  • 3 blood oranges, peel and pith removed and cut into segments
  • ¼ cup chopped smoked or toasted pecans

DIRECTIONS

1. Add juice to a small saucepan and bring to a simmer over high heat. Reduce heat to medium and continue cooking, stirring occasionally, until juice is reduced by half, about 30 to 45 minutes. Remove from heat and cool in the fridge. Once it’s cooled, put juice in a medium bowl and mix with all other ingredients except oil. Let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes, then slowly whisk in oil.
2. Drizzle endive spears with vinaigrette, and season with salt and pepper. Arrange on individual salad plates, placing the spears so they don’t stack inside one another. Add a few layers for some height. Next, lightly dress and season the beets. Tuck the blood oranges and beets into the voids created by layering the endive. Sprinkle with pecans, garnish with parsley, and finish with additional vinaigrette and salt and pepper to taste.