As a vegetable, chicory - also known as endive - is rather intriguing. The pale leaves are the result of a two-stage growth process, which sees the harvested plants discarded and the roots dug up. The roots are then kept in storage before the time comes to move them to a darkened 'forcing room', where the endives mature.

A short walk around the local markets reveals stalls bursting with endive. The bitter leaves are wonderful in a summer salad with a mix of greens, some shaved fennel, and cubes of avocado, but it's a vegetable that responds very well to braising.

For those who have been put off by chicory's bitter reputation, gently cooking the heads with sweet honey and acidic citrus transform the flavours into something altogether softer, more likely to convert.

You can serve this chicory recipe with all manner of meats, from roasted chicken to grilled pork, but it works particularly well with aiguilettes de canard au miel, a Perigord favourite. The natural bitterness of the chicory offsets the honey in both dishes, and the result is a meal you don't need a sweet tooth to enjoy. Follow this with a sharp green salad and a plate of cheese and you will be eating like a local.

Honey and orange braised chicory

• 1 chicory head per person 
  
• 1 tbsp olive oil per 4 heads of chicory
  
• 1 tbsp honey per 4 heads of chicory
  
• 1 tsp fresh thyme leaves per 4 heads of chicory
  
• the juice and zest of half an orange per 4 heads of chicory
  
• salt and freshly ground black pepper 
  

1. Pre-heat oven to 180C, then prepare the chicory by trimming the root end before slicing each head in half lengthways.
2. Mix all of the remaining ingredients to make the dressing, and place the chicory face-down in an ovenproof dish. Cover with the dressing and season.
3. Roast for around an hour, turning and basting the chicory at 15-minute intervals. It is ready when the liquid has cooked down to a thick, sticky syrup and the chicory has caramelised.

And the walnuts just keep coming. I thought I'd finished the last of the walnuts with Tuesday's ice-cream, but a petit apero with the neighbours last night saw me heading home with a two-kilo bag of shelled walnuts. As they'd been shelled, I need to eat them quickly. It's a hard life.

Over the winter months I have eaten every French walnut recipe known to man, from a Roquefort and walnut salad to gateau aux noix, healthy to unhealthy and everything in between. The time has come for me to look further afield in my quest to finish the walnuts, and Italy is the inspiration for tonight's meal. Just don't tell the neighbours...

Risotto is a classic Italian dish, and one that's perfect for winter. The combination of soothing carbohydrates and creamy dairy is hard to beat, and the constant stirring and adding of liquids is little more than an excuse to stay warm thanks to the heat of the stove. I've assuaged my French guilt by using local ingredients in this Italian recipe - you may prefer to change the Roquefort for Stilton, Gorgonzola, or Dolcelatte; they all work well.


Serves 4

For the caramelized endive:
4 large endives (also known as chicory)
2 tbsp olive oil
3 tsp granulated sugar (demerera is a nice alternative)
1 tsp ground nutmeg
120ml chicken or vegetable stock

For the walnut stock (optional):
100g shelled walnut halves
500ml vegetable stock

For the risotto:
250g risotto rice
470 ml white wine (optional, but this is a good way to finish a bottle; if you don't use the wine you will need to increase the amount of stock)
500ml stock (walnut, chicken, or vegetable - see note)
4 large shallots, finely chopped (or 1 small onion if you prefer)
5 tbsp olive oil
1 tbsp butter
50g crumbled Roquefort (or your preferred blue cheese)
60g shelled walnuts

[Note: Before starting this recipe, soak 100g of the walnuts overnight in water. For an easier version of the recipe, skip step 1 entirely, and replace the walnut stock with 500ml chicken or vegetable stock. If you go down this route, you'll only need 60g shelled walnuts.]

1. Strain the soaked walnuts, then put them in a pan with 300ml water. Bring to the boil, then simmer for 15 minutes. Strain again, then put them back in the pan with 500ml vegetable stock and bring to the boil. Pour the walnut and stock mixture into a blender and whizz till smooth. Return the walnut stock to the pan and set aside.
2. Put 60g of shelled walnuts onto a baking tray in a low oven and cook for 10 minutes, shaking after 5 minutes to ensure even toasting. You could also do this in a dry frying pan over a low heat, shaking more often. When toasted, put the walnuts to one side until you're ready to serve.
3. Heat your stock to a gentle simmer.
4. In a separate saucepan over a medium heat, melt the butter in the olive oil. Add the shallots and cook until translucent, stirring often so they don't burn.
5. Add rice, making sure that every grain is coated with the butter/oil mix. When the edges of the grains become translucent, it is time to start adding the wine. Add the wine in three parts, waiting between each addition for the liquid to be absorbed. 6. Stir gently, to stop the rice sticking to the pan. If you are not using wine, begin adding stock at this stage.
7. With the saucepan kept at a steady simmer, add the warm stock a ladle at a time, waiting for the stock to be absorbed between each addition. Stir gently. Keep adding the stock in this fashion until the pan is empty. This should take around 20 minutes, but if you prefer your rice with less 'bite', it could take up to 30. Keep tasting until you have the consistency you want.
8. When you are half-way through cooking the risotto (when the first ladle of stock has been absorbed if you are following the wine method), quarter the endives and discard the cores. Heat the olive oil in a large frying pan over a medium-high heat and sear the endives on all sides. They should be light brown in colour. When seared, sprinkle the endives with the sugar and ground nutmeg, and cook for a further 3 to 5 minutes, or until golden and caramelized. Turn the heat down to medium-low, add the stock and cover the pan. Cook for 10 to 12 minutes, then remove from the heat and keep warm. As your risotto should be nearly ready by this point, keeping the lid on should be enough to retain the heat.
9. When the risotto has reached your preferred consistency and all the stock has been absorbed, stir in the Roquefort and toasted walnuts. If you like a creamy risotto, add more butter at this point - two or three teaspoons should do the trick. Add salt and pepper to taste, then stir again.

To serve, plate the risotto and top each serving with the caramelized endive. Freshly shaved Parmesan or Grana Padano is an optional extra.


Variation: Keep the carnivores in your life happy by stirring in lardons or cubetti di pancetta before serving. Stirring often, fry 300g in a dry frying pan until they have reached the desired level of crispiness. They will cook in their own fat, and you will probably want to drain them on paper towel before adding them to the risotto.

Recipe adapted from a range of sources.

My daughter is obsessed with endives in salad, so always buys them at the market. Then the good intentions fall by the wayside, and salads are replaced with cheese-heavy dishes that are so much more appealing come supper time. Rather than letting the endives shrivel away into nothing, she covers them with cheese and proclaims the meal healthy. 'It's mainly vegetables, so it's got to be good for me. Right?'

Wrong. If you must cover your vegetables in cheese to make them palatable, you're turning a low-calorie dish into one that will have your doctor bemoaning your elevated levels of cholesterol. Nevertheless, it's probably better to eat cheese-covered vegetables than none at all, which is where the classic endive gratin comes in.

2 tsp butter
3 endives, sliced in half along their length and outer leaves removed
1 litre chicken or vegetable stock
200g lardons (or bacon cut into small strips)
juice of ½ a lemon
3 generous handfuls of grated cheese (your choice, but Gruyère and Tomme d'Audrix are best)
200 ml cream (single works, double is more indulgent)
a handful of breadcrumbs or panko (optional)
sea salt and freshly ground black pepper

1. Preheat oven to 180°. Use ½ a teaspoon of the butter to grease an ovenproof dish that will hold the endives snugly, without (much) overlapping.
2. In a deep frying pan over a medium-high heat, place the endives cut-side down and cover with the stock, the lemon juice, and a generous pinch of salt. Bring to the boil. Once the stock has boiled, cover the pan with a round of baking parchment (punctured to allow the steam to escape), reduce the heat to medium-low, and cook for around 15 minutes, until the endives are tender but not floppy.
3. While the endives are cooking, brown the lardons (or bacon) in a dry frying pain over a medium-high heat. They will cook in their own fat, and depending on the amount of fat in the lardons you might find that you need to drain the pan two or three times while cooking. I like my lardons brown and semi-crunchy, which takes the best part of 10 minutes, but if you prefer them a bit chewy it will take around 5 minutes.
4. Remove the endives from the pan and pat thoroughly dry using paper towels. You might want to set them aside for a few minutes first so that they are cool enough to handle.
5. Put the endives into the buttered dish so that they nestle together snugly. Scatter the cooked lardons over the endives, then cover with a handful of the grated cheese. Pour the cream over the dish, then cover with the remaining cheese and breadcrumbs (if using). Dot the remaining butter on top. Finally, add salt and pepper to taste.
6. Bake for 20-30 minutes. The dish will be ready when the top is golden brown and the cream is bubbling away.


Serves two as a main dish with salad, or three as a side dish. Works particularly well with lamb.