Thanksgiving Recipe: Bitter Greens Salad with Honey Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Maria Zizka will be creating an entire Thanksgiving menu for KCET Food. Here's a side dish -- enjoy!

Bitter Greens Salad with Honey Apple Cider Vinaigrette

Bitter greens are just the thing to accompany rich gravy and roasted turkey, but they need a little bit of Thanksgiving generosity to really shine. Here I soak them in ice water, which mellows their sharpness, and dress them in honey and apple cider vinaigrette.

Serves 6 as a first course

1 bunch watercress
1 head radicchio
1 head frisée
1 Belgian endive
2 small cloves garlic
3 tablespoons apple cider vinegar
2 tablespoons honey
¼ cup extra-virgin olive oil
1/3 cup pine nuts
2 pears
Kosher salt and freshly ground black pepper

Trim off the stem ends of the watercress, radicchio, frisée, and endive, and let the individual leaves fall into a bowl of ice water. Swish them around the let them soak for about 10 minutes.

Meanwhile, make the dressing. Pound the garlic and ½ teaspoon salt in a mortar (or with the back of a large knife) until it is a smooth paste. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in the apple cider vinegar, honey, and olive oil.

Place the pine nuts in a dry skillet over medium heat. Stir often (be very careful not to burn the pine nuts!) and toast them until they are golden brown, about 3 minutes.

Cut the pears lengthwise into quarters, then cut out and discard their cores. Slice the pears into 1/8-inch-thick slices.

Spin the greens dry and store them in the refrigerator until you're ready.

To serve, place the bitter greens in a very large bowl (or two). Season with salt and pepper, then add the pine nuts, pears, and most of the honey dressing. Toss well and taste. Add a bit more dressing, if you like. Serve straight away.