Stuffed Radicchio with Preserved-Lemon Yogurt

Stuffed Radicchio with Preserved-Lemon Yogurt (~by Eleanore Park, in Wall Street Journal)

For the filling:

·        ½ cup pine nuts

·        1 large egg, beaten

·        1 clove garlic, minced

·        ¼ cup chopped parsley

·        ¼ cup chopped mint

·        1/3 cup crumbled goat cheese (used 2-3 tablespoons of cream cheese)

·        ¼ teaspoon ground coriander

·        ¼ teaspoon ground cumin

·        ½ teaspoon red chile flakes (did not use)

·        ¼ cup chopped golden raisins (did not use)

·        1 tablespoon Sherry vinegar

·        2 tablespoons extra virgin olive oil

·        1 ½ teaspoons kosher salt

·        1 pound ground lamb (used 1 pound of ground beef)

For assembly and yogurt sauce:

·        Kosher salt

·        1 large radicchio cored and outer layers removed (used entire red cabbage instead)

·        2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oi, plus more for drizzling

·        1 cup Greek yogurt

·        1tablespoon chopped preserved lemon (did not use)

·        Zest and juice of ½ lemon (just used some lemon juice)

·        Kosher salt

·        ¼ cup torn mint leaves

·        1 teaspoon sumac (did not use)

Directions

1.      Preheat oven to 400 degrees. Toast pine nuts until golden brown, about 6 min. Set aside and let cool slightly. In large bowl, combine all ingredients for filling. Use your hands to mix until ingredients are evenly distributed.

2.      Bring medium pot of salted water to a boil over medium-high heat. Prepare an ice-water bath. Carefully add whole radicchio head to boiling water and blanch until leaves soften 1-2 min. Transfer radicchio to ice-water bath to halt cooking.

3.      Cover work surface with a few layers of paper towels. Peel radicchio leaves and place and place on paper towels to drain. Layer more paper towels between leaves as you go. If inner leaves seem tough, blanch further in boiling water until softened and flexible and transfer to ice-water bath. Continue you have about 15 leaves.

4.      Use your hands to gently roll about ¼ cup filling into an oblong cylinder. Place filling just above base of leave. Fold all sides of leave in on each other, ensuring all filing is enclosed and roll tightly to secure.

5.      Transfer toll to baking dish and repeat with remaining filling and radicchio leaes. Lightly drizzle olive oil all over and cover tightly with foil. Bake until radicchio leaves appear glossy, about 10 minutes. Remove foil and continue to bake until a cake tester inserted into middle of a roll feels warm, indicating that lamb is cooked through, 8 minutes. Remove from oven and let cool slightly.

6.      Make the yogurt sauce: in a medium bowl, combine 2 tablespoons olive oil, yogurt, preserved lemon, and lemon juice and zest. Season with salt to taste. Sprinkle with lemon leaves and sumac. Serve stuffed radicchio rolls with sauce on the side.