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Appetites and Adventures

Spring Endive Boats + WIAW

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Endive Boats are the perfect party salad.

Boats make salad a finger food!

Last Christmas when I catered this party I served endive boats rather than a salad dish.  They went over really well, so I decided to make a spring version for the wedding shower.

This spring version contained raspberries, raw asparagus (thin stalks), and pecans.  Over the top I drizzled a light raspberry vinaigrette.

A lot of people are surprised by raw asparagus, but it is quite tasty.  In season, the asparagus is especially sweet and the crunch it added was perfect.

The raspberries were just a tad sweet, but still have an early-season tartness that was well-balanced with the fruity vinaigrette and rich, nutty pecans.

Like the deviled eggs, there weren’t any leftover by the end of the party!

Recipe at the bottom.

Last week I announced I was taking the Green Giant Veg Pledge to add an additional cup of veggies to my daily eats.  Many of you said you would join me… have you been doing it?

Jenn @ Peas and Crayons is with her  What I Ate Wednesday theme for April:

Check out my veggies below; then click here to see how everyone else incorporated extra servings.

Breakfast:

Do you ever wake up starving?  Having followed the P90X workouts this week, I cannot get enough food!

Carrot Cake Smoothie:

  • 1 C spinach
  • 1 medium carrot
  • 1/2 banana
  • 1/2 in piece fresh ginger
  • 1/2 tsp cinnamon
  • 1/4 tsp nutmeg
  • 7-8 drops liquid vanilla stevia
  • 1 T rolled oats
  • 1/2 C unsweetened almond milk
  • 1 scoop vanilla protein powder
  • 1/2 tsp vanilla extract
  • 1 tsp maca (optional)
  • Pecans (optional – for topping)

Lunch:

The veggie-theme was full force at lunch today.  I had a conference call, so I ate it in two parts.

Part 1: A slice of whole wheat multi-grain bread from the farmer’s market with my Chipotle Corn Hummus, raw asparagus, zucchini, and carrots.

I brought the veggies to work in that carrot bag.  The bag was almost empty, so I piled my asparagus and zucchini slices rather than wasting another baggie.  I’m a total hippie.

Part 2: Garden Lites Cauliflower Souffle

Tasty, but I may have over-microwaved it.

Snacks:

With my 2-part lunch, I didn’t do much snacking… there was the daily Kombucha with raspebrries, a Think Thin, Wasa flatbread, and unpictued stuff (nuts, 1/2  cupcake, cereal):

Dinner:

It was a pizza night at a favorite pizza joint, Double Zero.  You cut the pie with scissors and they have one of the best Italian wine selections in ATL.  My pie was tomato, mozzarella, arugula, roasted garlic, and chilis.

Spring Endive Boats

  • 6-8 endive heads
  • 2 pints raspberries
  • 1 bunch thin asparagus, chopped
  • 1/2 C chopped pecans
  • Raspberry vinaigrette

Assemble endive leaves evenly across a large tray.  Divide raspberries, asparagus pieces, and pecans evenly among boats.  

Lightly drizzle with raspberry vinaigrette just before serving.

Serves 30.

***

I was going to post that mac ‘n cheese recipe… but I had to go endive for the veggie theme! 🙂

How are you doing with the Veg Pledge?  Have you been incorporating an extra veggie serving each day?

What is the best thing you’ve eaten so far this week?

Comments

  5. Those boats look so nice…and such a great idea to serve at a dinner party! The best thing I’ve eaten this week is probably glazed & barbecued sweet potato rounds…so simple yet SO delicious!

  6. Yeah, sometimes I just wake up starving even though I had a bed time snack.. I guess it happens? 🙂
    I had that same Think Thin bar a few days ago. 🙂

  8. Aww those boats are so pretty! I was just going to say “perfect for spring” but duh, thats part of your title for them haha
    I like the idea of the carrot cake smoothie too! Must try once the weather is officially WARM

  10. I love the little endive boats!! SO cute!
    I woke up starving this morning, but it’s probably because I didn’t go to bed full for once (I’m trying to be a lot more mindful of my night-time snacking habits. I like to think that if I wake up hungry with my stomach growling, that’s my tummy burning up fat. 🙂
    I definitely need to make that carrot cake smoothie- sounds awesome!
    Oh- and hey- fellow Kombucha addict: have you made your own before? I can’t remember. Amanda from Pickles n Honey had a great post about it yesterday: http://www.picklesnhoney.com/2012/04/09/how-to-make-kombucha-growing-a-scoby/
    I’m going to try it!

    • I don’t know how you do it with all the classes you teach – I’d be inhaling food 24-7. 🙂

      Thanks for sharing the kombucha post! I really should make my own… it’s SO expensive.

  11. I always think about making a smoothie but then I don’t want to clean the blender. How lame is that? I have all the ingredients for this one though, maybe tomorrow! Or Saturday. Because I can clean more on the weekends?

  12. Beautiful endive boats–thanks for sharing the recipe! Love the hippie comment… I try really hard to be eco-friendly, but sometimes it’s so challenging… I shop bulk to avoid packaging but then all the bulk bin baggies come home with me, and I don’t have the time/arms/will to drag all my containers along with me. But those little things (like stuffing veggies in a carrot bag) totally count! 🙂

    • I feel that same way about the bulk bins! And about the veggies. I don’t put everything in as baggie like some people, but some bagging cannot be avoided.

  13. Berries + asparagus…interesting! Your creativity never ceases to amaze me!

    And I had one of those “wake up and I’m starving days” today. I love that feeling though because it makes breakfast that much more enjoyable!

    • Thank you! I love adding fruit to salads – the little bit of sweetness makes everything “pop.”

  20. Awesome endive boats (part 2!). I love that you recreated them seasonally. PS You keep making me want to go to these places up Roswell Rd & far far away! Double Zero sounds awesome! Cut your pizza with sicssors?! The kid in me is excited about that.

    • You should go!!! It’s definitely work the trip OTP… and it JUST barely OTP, so that makes it ok 🙂

  21. I’ve been eating kimchi/grain/green bowls like 3-4 times a week. They are the best and I’m not getting sick out it. So good. Every one of my bowls has like 2+ cups of veggies – I just start dumping in everything in my fridge. Veggies are so versatile.

  22. Those boats are such a great idea! So easy to make and they look so fancy 🙂 I also love your smoothie combo – I just might make that tomorrow as my post-workout breakie.

  24. I always double up in bags – I hate wasting a new bag when I have a perfectly good half-full one I can use. Mixed food is better then waste. It could also be because I am lazy!

    Great recipe and delicious veggie filled eats! Looks amazing and delicious as always!

  29. Ohmygosh, I remember buying those vegeatble souffles at Zabar’s and eating them cold in my hotel room in New York!!!

    I want to be back there.

  30. Asparagus and raspberries? My interest is piqued.

    Also like the sound of that pizza. I was going to make a pizza tonight…

    As for veggies, I’m not sure I could eat any more veggies than I usually do already, but probably I could probably do with more greens…

    • They’re really good together! I’m a huge fan of mixing fruits in with my veggies. 🙂

  31. The endive boats look amazing. And I’m sure the taste was incredible with all the different colours and textures and flavours. Little boats made from endive is a great idea – I might have to ‘borrow’ that! And what a great challenge to set for yourself. I know I certainly need to eat a wider variety and a greater quantity of vegetables xx

    • Thank you! Please do borrow the idea… I’d love to see what flavor combos you come up with!

  32. Cool endive boats! Everything for the wedding shower looks fantastic! I’m catering my first little party in May and I am starting to collect little ideas for the festivities. I might just steal/borrow/use your endive boat idea 😉

    I tried those garden lites a few times… I just can’t seem to like them. I think they are really salty and they stay wet in the middle no matter how long I cook them. le sigh. It’s too bad. I really want to like them.

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