Roasted Radicchio, Speck and Balsamic Salad

So vegetables and salads, yeah um, definitely not my thing and in the old days, were avoided at all costs (well except for caesar salads because that was the only time I got to eat bacon, croutons, eggs and creamy dressing and still think I was being ‘healthy’). But lo and behold, the parentals were right when they said that taste buds will change because now in my *cough* old age *cough* my inner herbivore has finally broken through. Aah parents, they look crazy but damn they know what they’re talking about some of the time!

Recently I was sent a hamper of fresh produce from Perfection Fresh. I never thought I’d appreciate things like this but yep, I may have gotten a little giddy when I saw the likes of Dutch carrots, brussel sprouts and tomatoes. But there was one that got me a little stumped; Treviso radicchio. I’ve never cooked with it and to be honest, I’m not a fan of the bitterness.

I heard that grilling or roasting radicchio mellows out the bitter flavour and gives it an almost nutty fragrance. I then consulted with Martha and I was sold. Because the radicchio was roasted with a good coating of (fabulous) extra virgin olive oil, I skipped on making a proper dressing. In fact a touch of seasoning and a good drizzle of balsamic vinegar was all that it needed.

If you like radicchio, then this a perfect winter salad for you. If you’re after a strictly vegetarian version, grilled haloumi would be a brilliant replacement for the speck (or you can totally add it in on top of the speck and take this to a whole new level of omg-indulgence).

Tagged as: Balsamic Vinegar, Garlic, Grilled, Perfection Fresh, Roasted, Salad, Speck, Treviso radicchio, Winter