INCREDIBLE FRENCH ENDIVE SALAD WITH AGED HERB GOAT CHEESE TOASTS

Incredible French Endive Salad with Aged Herb Goat Cheese Toasts image

Yield 4 servings

Number Of Ingredients 9

1 garlic clove
Juice of 1/ 2 lemon
Coarse salt
A few sprigs of fresh flat-leaf parsley leaves
1/4 cup extra-virgin olive oil (EVOO) (eyeball it)
12 heads of endive (look for the whitest heads you can find, free of scars)
8 slices white toasting bread
2 8-ounce logs aged goat cheese
3 tablespoons Herbes de Provence (dried French herb blend, available on the spice aisle)

Steps:

Heat a grill pan to medium high. Turn on the broiler and place a rack at least 10 inches from the heat.
In a blender, combine the garlic, lemon juice, a little salt, and the parsley. Turn the blender on the "puree" setting. Stream the EVOO into the blender and puree the dressing until smooth and emulsified.
Trim the endives of tough ends and peel away any dry or badly scarred outer leaves. Place the endives in a shallow dish and pour the dressing over them. Turn them in the dressing to coat them evenly. Place on the hot grill pan and gently cook the endives for 6 to 7 minutes, until tender, turning frequently.
Lightly toast the bread under the broiler on each side and remove. Cut the bread corner to corner to make 16 triangles. Trim the ends off the logs of cheese and cut each log into 8 disks. (Cut across the middle of each log, then keep halving the sections until you have 16 equal disks from the 2 logs.) Scatter the Herbes de Provence onto the cutting board. Gently turn each disk of cheese in the dried herbs and situate a disk on each toast. Return the toasts to the oven and broil for 2 to 3 minutes to warm the cheese through and darken the toast to a light, even golden brown.
Remove the endives 3 at a time to a plate. Carefully halve them lengthwise with a small sharp knife and fan the halved grilled endives across the plate. Add 4 triangles of toast with warm goat cheese to the same plate and serve. Repeat with the remaining portions.