Roasted Pumpkin, Hazelnut, and Fig Radicchio Cups
These roasted pumpkin, hazelnut, and fig radicchio cups are the perfect appetiser with the beautiful balance of bitter, sweet, and savoury.
Very easy to make, all the components can be made ahead of time and assembled right before you have guests come over to serve a stunning starter to any dinner party. The colours in these cups are beautiful with a great balance of textures and flavours.
After sharing a radicchio salad recipe with you a while ago, and the positive feedback that I’ve had from that simple recipe, I wanted to celebrate that wonderful bitter leafy vegetable again.
On that note, keep an eye out for another wonderful radicchio recipe in the coming months. I know so many people just have no idea what to do with this beautiful leafy salad!
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I love to photograph it, it’s super photogenic.
Ingredient swaps
If you don’t have all of the ingredients for these radicchio cups, don’t worry, I’ve got you covered! You can swap some things out.
You can swap the figs for sliced Bosc pears, the hazelnuts for macadamias, or walnuts. Pumpkin can also be traded for sweet potato.
The garnish of parsley is there for a bit of colour, so it’s not critical. It just adds another element of flavour. It can be swapped out for chives or even watercress.
The vinegarette is there to take the bitter edge off the radicchio. It’s one of the only bitter foods that I can say that I truly love.
My mum always used to say “if it’s very bitter for you, then you need to eat it!”. I’ll happily eat these radicchio cups all day.
I mean, how pretty are these?!?
These radicchio cups are:
- Bitter
- Sweet
- Soft
- Crunchy
- Flavourful
- Balanced
- Hint of heat
Other recipes you’ll love:
- Simple Potato and Radicchio Salad
- Easy Vegan Stuffed Mushrooms
- Spiced Roasted Pumpkin with Farro and Hummus
- Spiced Quinoa and Eggplant Rolls (GF)
- Vegan Bruschetta Toppings Done Four Ways
- Vegan Spinach Crepes with Pesto Mushrooms (Gluten-Free)
If you try this recipe, let me know! We’d love for you to leave a comment and rating below. If you want to go that extra mile, tag us on Instagram, or share your photo of the recipe on Pinterest. Or Pin It for later!
Roasted Pumpkin, Hazelnut, and Fig Radicchio Cups
- Prep Time: 30 minutes
- Cook Time: 30 minutes
- Total Time: 1 hours
- Yield: 12 cups
Description
These perfectly balanced radicchio cups are great served as an appetizer. A beautiful combination of flavors and textures, they will certainly look stunning on a plate!Â
Ingredients
- 6 cups / 700g pumpkin* (or â…“ medium-sized)Â
- 4 tablespoons olive oil
- 1 teaspoon salt
- ¼ teaspoon chili powder (optional)
- 1 small head of radicchio
- 6 figs, sliced
- ¼ cup dry roasted hazelnuts
- â…“ cup balsamic vinegar
- 1 tablespoon maple syrup
- Parsley, for garnish
- Zest of a lemon (optional)
- Salt, to taste
Instructions
- Preheat the oven to 200 degrees Celcius (390 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Clean and chop the pumpkin into small cubes and add to a large bowl. Add in 3 tablespoons of the olive oil, salt, and chili. Stir well and transfer to a flat baking tray. Make sure that all the pumpkin is flat on the tray so that is bakes rather then steams.
- Place in the oven and bake for 30 minutes or until the pumpkin is done. You want a bit of colour on it.
- While the pumpkin is baking, separate 12 leaves from the head of the radicchio. Be careful when separating them not to damage them. Wash, dry well and set aside.
- In a small food processor, add the hazelnuts and blend until you get nice chunks. Don’t overdo it, you still want halves and quarters. If you don’t have a small food processor, place them in a clean tea towel and hit them against the benchtop a few times or you can use a rolling pin to do the same.
- In a small saucepan on low-medium heat, add the balsamic vinegar. Bring to a simmer and simmer for around 8-10 minutes. It will be ready when it starts to show signs of bubbling (this is the process of it caramelizing). Make sure to not overheat as it will go hard once cooled, bitter, and unpleasant. Stir in the other 1 tablespoon of olive oil and maple syrup.
- Once the pumpkin is done, you’re ready to start assembling.
- Add around 2 tablespoons of pumpkin to a radicchio leaf, followed by two slices of fig and around a tablespoon of hazelnuts. To finish off, break up some parsley leaves and drizzle with the balsamic reduction dressing. Season with additional salt and some lemon zest.
- Repeat this process for all the cups. It’s easier and quicker if you do each layer for all cups at one time.
Notes
Pumpkin: These weights were measured after the pumpkin had been cleaned
- Diet: Vegan
This came out great with some subs. I used your suggested sweet potato. Used spinach instead of radicchio. And because it had no bitterness, I used a few tablespoons of straight balsamic. It was a delicious wrap. Thanks for your creation.
So glad you enjoyed it! Thanks for sharing the adjustments you made 🙂