It’s hard to believe we’re nearing the end of 2022 and my second year of “cooking countries.” Last year I cooked from 57 countries and I kept the momentum going this year with 59 more (I’m just now realizing I surpassed last year…didn’t know and that’s awesome!). I’ll probably slow the pace a bit in 2023 since I can’t see wrapping up the remainder in a year, plus admittedly there are some new cookbooks I want to explore, but I digress.

For my final country of the year I selected Belgium and found a dish that reminded me of the chicken cordon bleu that my mom used to make but instead of chicken, the center was Belgian endive! This was my first time cooking endive and the hardest part was finding endives! Maybe it was the time of year or just the time I went to the grocery store but it took a third trip out (and a trip to Whole Foods) to find these. The endives are first boiled and then you make a gruyere cheese sauce for coating the endives, wrap them in ham, and then pop them in the oven under the broiler. They were ready very quickly and made a great side dish to our simple chicken dinner. In other words, they look a bit more involved than they are so if you’re looking to make an easy but sophisticated European side dish, this makes for a good option.

This marks my last new country for the year but I’ll return next week with a “best of 2022” post and then hit the ground running in 2023. Have a wonderful holiday, all!

Recipe I used: https://www.allrecipes.com/recipe/149844/belgian-endive-au-gratin/

Overall Level of Effort: 2

Skill Level: Beginner

Would Make it Again? Yes

Additional Notes: None! But just recognize that this isn’t substantive enough for a main dish but best as an appetizer or a side.