You may have noticed I've been talking a lot of Endives as of late. This is the third recipe in a series that I've developed for them over the past couple of months. I made a fall Endive Salad for October, a warm Endive side dish for November, and now a festive Endive appetizer for December (and the holidays!) I think this is one of my favorite ways to use Endives mainly because it's fun (who doesn't love bite-sized, hand held food) and because it makes for such a stunning appetizer. One of my favorite appetizers of all times is still these endive leaves filled with beets and avocados. Plus, they are SO easy to throw together (I recently shot an infographic for California Endive that shows just how easy it can be- no recipe needed!)
This appetizer comes out of my love for all things ginger. I've been on a kick over the past few months which came back with renewed vigor after I went to trader joe's yesterday and picked up a box of mini gingerbread men and some gussied up ginger ale. Of course, with the pregnancy, goat cheese and wine is off the list so if you have any pregnant friends, cream cheese is also awesome (and served with some non-alcoholic wine, aka grape juice.)
PrintGinger Pear and Goat Cheese Endive Appetizer
- Prep Time: 15 mins
- Cook Time: 5 mins
- Total Time: 20 mins
- Yield: 2 ½ dozen endive leaves 1x
Ingredients
- 1 small, ripe pear
- 2 teaspoons minced ginger
- 1 tablespoon honey
- Small pinch salt
- 3-4 Endives
- 3 ounces goat cheese, room temperature
Instructions
- Peel and cut the pear into small cubes. Place the pears with the minced ginger and honey in a sauce pan. Heat and stir until ingredients are combined and pear is tender, 3-4 minutes. Remove from heat and set aside.
- Cut roughly a ½" from the bottom of the endive and carefully peel off the leaves. Smear 2-3 teaspoons of goat cheese and top with a small spoonful of pears. Repeat with remaining leaves, goat cheese, and pears. Serve warm or chilled.
Post sponsored by California Endives. All thoughts and opinions are my own.
Liz @ Floating Kitchen says
Sounds delicious! I love using endive like a little spoon. Such a fun appetizer or snack!
Judie says
I can't wait to try one of these for the Christmas progressive dinner in our court next week!
dani says
What a great alternative to holiday party foods that all seem to involve pastry! Can't wait to experiment more with endive appetizers.
<3 dani
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Katie @ Whole Nourishment says
What a simple and gorgeous appetizer. I love pear and goat cheese together but I hadn't thought to add ginger, though it sounds like the perfect thing to elevate the flavors.
Amy @ Parsley In My Teeth says
Great combination of flavors! I love one/two-bite appetizers that are easy to put together and easy for guests to eat.
Susan says
This sounds like a really nice appetizer. I'm curious, though, why goat cheese doesn't work with pregnancy?
erin says
It's recommended to avoid soft cheeses because of listeria (primarily in uncooked cheeses using non-pasteurized milk).
[email protected] says
Simple and elegant. Beautiful
Jasmin says
Hi Erin,
these appetizers look very tempting.
I love to use endives too, they color and nutty flavor are quite inspirative...
Autumn says
Hmm, this looks great! I've been hearing lots of talk in the blogosphere about endives and I even saw them in my local grocery store last week but still hesitated to buy them because I wasn't sure what I would make. This sounds like a good intro though!
Sarah @ SnixyKitchen says
As a ginger addict (I've made your ginger butternut squash soup about 5 times now...including for dinner tonight), this endive appetizer is totally up my alley!
Susie says
OOh! Ginger and goat cheese sound good! What do endives taste like?
erin says
Raw they are pretty mild- not much different then any other type of green. Cooked they have a really nice savory, slightly earthy flavor!