Refreshing endive, tangerine and kumquat salad from Bradley Ogden

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This weekend I was poking through cookbooks looking for something new to do with the tangerines weighing down our 3-year-old tree. It’s armed with some powerful thorns and getting at the fruit in the center of the tree involves some deft maneuvering, not to mention thick gloves. I managed to pick a small basket. Now what?

In ‘Holiday Dinners with Bradley Ogden,’ I found this recipe for endive salad with tangerines and kumquats. Especially lovely if you use both regular and red endive. Trader Joe’s actually packages them in three -- one white and two red. Added bonus, the recipe enabled me to use the kumquats on the potted tree outside the kitchen door. I needed to pick them so the new crop will come in.

I love the sweetness of the tangerines with the bitter crunchy endive and sweet yet tart kumquats. Peeling the tangerines is easy: just remember to remove any stringy pith. Endive isn’t the exotic green it once was and can be found at most markets, which makes last-minute less of a chore.

Adapted from ‘Holiday Dinners with Bradley Ogden: 150 Festive Recipes for Bringing Family and Friends Together’ (Running Press, 2011, 280 pages, $30).

To make six servings, separate the leaves of six heads Belgian endive. In a medium bowl, mix 1 tablespoon freshly squeezed lemon juice with 6 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil, 1/2 teaspoon kosher salt and 1/4 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper. Add the endive leaves and toss to coat. Peel six tangerines and cut into 1/4 inch slices. Cut 18 kumquats into 1/8 inch slices. Arrange the leaves on six salad plates, top with tangerine slices and sprinkle with the kumquats. Serve immediately.

I added ribbons of fresh mint.

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Perry, as in fermented pear juice

-- S. Irene Virbila
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