Endive World - Home of California Vegetable Specialties

It was a rainier-than-usual spring here in Northern California, with many farmers struggling through the wettest season they’ve seen in at least 20 years. The strawberry harvest was especially hard-hit, but many other early spring crops came in later and with lower yields than usual. With our year-round production cycle, California Vegetable Specialties was less affected by the weather than many of our fellow growers. So don’t worry – there’s plenty of fresh, delicious California Endive for you to enjoy! While endive and its fellow chicories are often characterized as “winter” vegetables, it turned up in new recipes published in several spring issues of distinguished culinary magazines. The April issue of Martha Stewart Living includes a recipe for Endive Spears with Herbed Goat Cheese. This refreshing pairing of tangy fresh cheese, savory spring herbs, and clean-flavored, crunchy endive positively screams SPRING! You can find a photo of the dish on page 162, and the recipe itself on page 213.

Endive Around the Globe

Endive enjoyment is truly an international phenomenon. The April issue of Delicious, published in New Zealand, featured a recipe for snapper with a radicchio and “witlof” salad. “Witlof,” which means “white leaf” in Dutch and Flemish, is one variation of witloof chicory, the common name for endive among Europeans. In this light and tasty-sounding dish, the snapper is sautéed and served atop the salad, dressed with an orange vinaigrette. If your newsstand happens to carry Delicious, you’ll find the recipe on page 143.

Cooking Light’s May issue continues the international endive experience, evoking the flavors of Southern Italy in a recipe for Sicilian-Style Greens over Polenta (page 154). The featured greens are endive, kale, and turnip greens. They’re sautéed with raisins and pine nuts, then served over creamy polenta and topped with cheese-garlic breadcrumbs. In the June issue of Food & Wine, and currently available online you can find a recipe for Arugula and Endive Salad with Pine Nuts and Parmesan. This quick and healthy warm-weather dish is served along side grilled swordfish steaks with basil-caper butter. Fire up the BBQ, spring has definitely sprung!

Endive in the Napa Wine Country

On Friday, June 6, California Vegetable Specialties returned to the Wine Country to participate in Auction Napa Valley. Sponsored by the Napa Valley Vintners, the annual Auction Napa Valley is billed as the granddaddy of America’s charity wine auctions. CVS took part in the Friday Auction & Festival, where we sampled endigia, a special type of chicory that we grow primarily for chefs. We topped the striking magenta leaves with a mango/avocado/black bean salsa, and watched guests enjoy endive with every wine varietal that the Napa Valley has to offer. This year’s Auction Napa Valley raised $8.4 million over the course of the four-day event for health care, youth services, and low-income housing efforts.