Here’s yet another dish where my expertise starts and ends with the grill, and Wonderwife takes it from there. First, you are going to need a head of Raddichio – look for one that is small and compact. Quarter that sucker and make sure to leave the root in tact – this will keep the leaves together:
Raddichio is often grilled to mellow out its bitter flavor. Ideally, you want a little bit of char, but also to preserve the texture of the leaves. I place the quarters on the grill over a super-hot wood fire for about 2-3 minutes a side. If you didn’t get enough char, try another two minutes, but that’s it. When you are done, they should look like this:
OK, now, caramelizing onions. This is a recipe in itself – but basically it goes down like this – cut up a medium size yellow onion and throw that into a (preferably) cast iron sauce pan in which you have heated 1-2 tbs of butter. The key is cooking them SLOWLY so they don't burn; brown them until softened at medium heat then reduce to low put a lid on them, stirring intermittently to cook evenly for about 10 minutes. Then some basalmic vinegar and turn up the heat to reduce the liquid. Now dump the onions over your raddichio:
All that's left to do now is to crumble some goat cheese that on top of the onions, and garnish with some chopped basil to brighten up the flavor. Although the Raddichio will still pack a bitter wallop, it should be balanced by the sweetness of the onions and the richness of the cheese. Enjoy!
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