For my French Cocktail Hour party, I prepared the following recipe. There's something so elegant about salad served in endive leaves. The presentation is not only beautiful but the leaves also make for a great vessel for appetizers. I adapted the original recipe to serve as an appetizer and also included dried cranberries for my favorite salad combo - nuts, cheese, and fruit...


6 - 8 medium endive
1/2 cup Roquefort cheese, crumbled
1/2 cup candied walnut halves
1/2 cup dried cranberroes
1/4 cup extra olive oil
1 teaspoon Dijon mustard
1-2 tablespoons balsamic vinegar
salt & pepper to taste

Remove the outside leaves from the endives; separate the other leaves. Place the leaves on a serving platter.

In a bowl, combine the cheese, dried cranberries, and walnuts. Place a tablespoon of the mixture inside each of the endive leaves.

In a small bowl, whisk together the oil, mustard, vinegar, salt and pepper to create a vinaigrette. Drizzle the vinaigrette over the filled endive leaves and serve.