Winter salad packs some heft

How often do we read some article about how meaningful it is to cook with the seasons? But winter can test those good intentions.

You try to make a meal out of two rutabagas and a turnip.

But hey, I’m not really that curmudgeonly about winter. I love cold-weather cooking, in fact. And I like a challenge.

Making a salad in the warm months is an exercise in greediness and narrowing down choices. Our bowls overfloweth.

But this time of year, the pickings get slimmer. Time for those creative juices to flow: We might think about including a cooked ingredient or two in a salad, and maybe some cold-weather fruit.

In this salad, beautiful, sweet, orange, butternut squash gets roasted with some slightly — but appealingly — bitter radicchio.

Roasting sweetens up the lettuce a bit and the squash, too. When cooled, they are mixed with some assertive endive, tart apple and earthy chickpeas.

You can choose between red wine or balsamic vinegar for the dressing. Either will amp up the tartness and the balsamic will add a little sweetness, as well.

The ricotta salata is the amazing finishing touch. It is an Italian cheese that should be a lot more popular than it is.

Ricotta salata is made from the whey of sheep’s milk. It has an ivory colour, a lovely saltiness and a firm, crumbly texture.

You could also use goat cheese, but I might sprinkle that over the top of the salad so it stays distinct and doesn’t mush into the rest of the dish.