I love cooking in all seasons but I must admit that towards the end of winter I begin to grow tired of the sweet and stodgy comfort foods that define the season. I crave freshness.

Fortunately this is when forced chicory and radicchio come into their own and why they are so invaluable in my kitchen. They are some of the few winter crops that offer the tenderness and crisp bite of new growth and as such can transform dishes with their bitter-sweet crunch.

Before our little girl was born my husband and I would visit Venice in the winter (with its low light and pastel reflections) and would eat out fill of these delicious vegetables. I could spend hours mulling over the remarkable selection at the market beneath the Rialto bridge. From the perfectly pale and pointed chicons to the almost tentacle like purple leaves of Radicchio de Treviso, in my mind there’s a variety for almost every occasion.

I’d love to work out how to grow them successfully in my home garden as I find them pretty hard to come by in northern England (I’ve only really seen a great selection at Natoora shops in London) but at the moment remain a  little daunted by the process. As I understand it (and I could be wrong!) raddichio and endive start their lives in the same way as most other leafy crops, sown outside in shallow drills. However, when the plant has matured they’re dug up (root and all), their leaves cut away (these can be eaten) and then planted in sand in dark sheds. Blanched by lack of light the regrowth is sweeter and crisper than the original leaves. Perhaps I just need to be brave and give it a go, but for now rely on my local greengrocer.

 Many of my winter salads feature radicchio in some form but this has got to be one of my favourites. I just love it. The leaves work so beautifully with the sweet and fragrant fruit (surely blood oranges, persimmon and pomegranates are some of the stars of winter) and the hazelnuts add an earthy bite. Best of all the the juiciness of the fruit means that it barely requires dressing – a good drizzle of olive oil and some flaked sea salt is enough to bring the dish together.

All in all a beautiful salad to serve throughout the winter months, whether as part of a festive spread or simply with some bread and cheese. I hope you enjoy it as much as I always do!

Ingredients

1 head of white forced chicory

1 head of red forced chicory

2 blood oranges

1 persimmon

1 pomegranate

1 handful of hazelnuts

olive oil

sea salt

Method

1. Begin by preparing the vegetables and fruit. Trim the bases of the red and white chicory and then snap off the boat-shaped leaves and set aside. Next, use a knife to cut away all the skin and pith from the oranges and slice into rounds. Quarter the persimmon and finely slice each section and remove the seeds from the pomegranate (I find the easiest way to do this is to cut them in half and holding the cut side in your palm over a bowl bash the underside with a wooden spoon.)

2. Place a dry shallow frying pan over a low heat and add the hazelnuts. Gently toast for a few minutes, jiggling every so often, until the nuts are golden brown and fragrant. Remove from the heat.

3. Add the chicory, orange, persimmon and pomegranate seeds in a large bowl and mix well. Add a good pinch of flaked sea salt and drizzle with extra virgin oil. Taste and if required add more salt or oil.

4. Arrange the salad on a platter, scatter over the toasted hazelnuts and serve.