Radicchio, Blood Orange & Goat Cheese Salad
The middle of winter can be a challenge to make salads. As with any vegetable or fruit, look for what is currently in season to create a flavorful & healthy dish of greens, fruit & veggies. This month in honor of Saint Vincent of Zaragoza, Spain & the Patron Saint of Wine Vinegar, we tried Chef Justin Severino’s salad of radicchio lettuce, “blood” oranges & goat cheese dressed with vinaigrette made from Villa Graziella Organic 8 year aged Balsamic Vinegar di Modena & single estate Extra Virgin Olive Oil. The recipe states preparation takes only 15 minutes; however it took us longer to supreme oranges for the 1st time, toast & chop the pistachios. The array of winter ingredients resulted in a delicious medley of sweet, savory, tangy, salty, creamy & nutty flavors all in 1 colorful dish! Serve it as a starter or as a side dish to fish.
Serves 4
Simple Ingredients:
6 tablespoons of Villa Graziella Organic Extra Virgin Olive Oil + extra to season
2 tablespoon Villa Graziella Organic Balsamic Vinegar
Juice of ½ a medium sized lemon, if possible not from concentrate
2 medium sized “blood”oranges
1 ½ medium heads of radicchio lettuce, washed, dried & separated into 3 inch or bite size pieces
8 ounces soft, room temperature goat cheese
1 large, ripe avocado cubed
¾ cup pistachio nuts, toasted & coarsely chopped
¼ cup mint leaves, wash, dried & roughly chopped + extra for garnish
Freshly ground black pepper
Sea salt
Easy Directions:
For the vinaigrette, place vinegar into a small bowl, slowly whisk in oil, season with lemon juice, salt & pepper to taste, set aside.
To supreme the oranges, use a knife to trim the top & bottom of the fruit.
Set the orange on 1 end, slice from top to bottom following the curve of the fruit, cutting away the peel & white pith.
Loosen & release the orange sections one at a time by inserting the blade between membrane the flesh on either side, then removing loosened flesh. Place orange sections in a large bowl.
Gently combine orange sections, mint, pistachios, pomegranate seeds, avocado & radicchio lettuce.
Re-whisk the vinaigrette & pour over the ingredients to coat the salad mixture. Season with salt.
Arrange the goat cheese across a serving platter or individual plates.
Drizzle the cheese with olive oil & season with salt & pepper.
Arrange the salad over cheese & garnish with extra mint & pistachios
Serve & enjoy!
At Villa Graziella Organic our team tries & taste every recipe we feature. While we love to share our family recipes & those talented home cooks & chefs, sometimes we adapt them so they are even easier to make. As with our products, our goal is for you to have a healthy & delicious experience using Villa Graziella recipes. So try them in your kitchen, feel free to tweak them & please tell us what we think. We welcome your comments & feedback.
Grazie!