Winter greens such as kale and swiss chard are plentiful at this time of year, but another greens family that is common in Italy in the cold weather is cicoria, or chicory. The chicory family includes many different greens, including puntarelle from Rome, but the most welcome and famous are the radicchios from the Veneto.
Known as far back as Roman times, there are many varieties of radicchio, the round cabbage-shaped Chioggia being the best-known in the US market. Grown in California, it’s a year-round staple in US produce departments. But in Italy the time of year between Christmas and Easter brings a welcome flood of winter crop radicchio to the marketplace. Most of them are known for the name of the town in the Veneto region where they are grown.
The oldest and most famous is the Treviso, which is long and shaped like romaine lettuce; it has protected status and can only be grown around the town of Treviso and a few towns outside Venice and Padova. There is also the Castelfranco, with variegated creamy leaves speckled with red, and the Verona with full shaped round heads. Chioggia also derives its name from a town on the Venetian coast.
But the rarest of all and the radicchio that you simply must be in Italy to find is the winter tardivo, which means “late”. Known for its chef-hat shape, strong white ribs and trimmed root, these heads are harvested soon after the first November frost. Labor intensive to produce, after pulling them up with the root ball attached, they are kept in circulating spring water, which brings on crisp new shoots on the inside of the head. After several weeks they are plucked from the spring water and the root ball is carefully trimmed, with the dead leaves pulled away. They seemingly magically appear in the markets in mid-winter and are wonderful, crisp and bittersweet.
All radicchio are great raw in salads or can be grilled or sautéed with a sprinkle of olive oil and sea salt. A delicious risotto can also be made with sauteed radicchio, a bright and warm risotto to warm you in the cold mid-winter.
Buon Appetito! Gina
Risotto con Radicchio
2 cups fresh radicchio, chopped
1 onion, chopped finely
1/4 cup olive oil
2 cups white wine
2 cups arborio rice (1/4 cup per person)
6-8 cups rich vegetable or chicken broth
6 tbsp butter
¾ cup parmigiano or grana padana, grated
Make the vegetable broth with a chopped carrot, a celery stalk or two, half an onion, a few sprigs of fresh parsley, some peppercorns and a bay leaf; for chicken broth, add ½ a chicken. Simmer 60 minutes and after it’s cooked, discard the veggies and add salt to taste.
Heat the broth to almost boiling and keep hot.
In a large pot, sauté the onion in olive oil and 1 tbsp butter until soft, then add the radicchio and cook 2 minutes. Add the rice and stir to coat with oil, allowing the kernals to heat up. Add the white wine and stir until well cooked off. Add the broth one to two cups at a time, stirring until the liquid is absorbed with each addition. The rice should be soupy after each addition of hot liquid; as the liquid cooks off and is absorbed, the mixture becomes drier, at which point you add liquid to the soupy stage again. Continue this process until the rice is cooked, with the interior of the kernels being slightly al dente, about 15 minutes. Check for salt.
Add the butter and grated cheese and vigorously beat them in. The risotto will stiffen quickly, so serve it immediately, adding additional liquid as needed right before serving to maintain the characteristic creaminess of the dish.