I know it’s still a bit early for strawberries, and it might have been the hot and sunny weather, but when I spotted these shiny red beauties earlier this week, I just couldn’t resist. Fortunately, I also had a few heads of chicory lying around. Raw, most chicory nowadays is mild, crunchy and sweet. Cooking brings out its slightly bitter aroma, so I like to char the leaves briefly in a hot pan to up the flavour a little bit without losing the crunch. Combined with sweet, juicy strawberries, balsamic vinaigrette, salty sunflower seeds and creamy chunks of buffalo mozzarella this salad is everything it should be. 

Ingredients (for 2):

2 small heads of chicory, leaves separated

about 10 strawberries, sliced

a handful of sunflower seeds

a splash of soy sauce

1 ball of buffalo mozzarella

for the vinaigrette

3 tbsp extra virgin olive oil

1,5 tbsp balsamic vinegar

salt

black pepper

• Heat a tiny bit of sunflower oil in a hot skillet and stir the sunflower seeds until golden brown. Add a splash of soy sauce, coat to stir and immediately transfer to a bowl.

• Clean the pan, add a drop of olive oil and briefly char the chicory leaves in the hot pan.
• Arrange the chicory on a plate with the sliced strawberries, the sunflower seeds and tiny pieces of buffalo mozzarella, then finish off with the balsamic vinaigrette and a generous amount of freshly milled black pepper.

Welcome to Cuisine d’Eli. My name is Elizabeth and I’m a personal chef and caterer with a passion for sustainable food. I’m based in Utrecht, the Netherlands. Contact me for more information and/or bookings.

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Welkom bij Cuisine d’Eli. Ik ben Elizabeth: duurzame kok aan huis en cateraar. Meer weten? Neem gerust een kijkje op de rest van mijn website of neem contact met me op voor meer informatie.