Radicchio is a champion in the line-up of winter leaf vegetables. While it looks like a small cabbage, it's actually a chicory with a slightly bitter, crisp taste. It's colorful, readily available, and boasts a unique spicy taste that is tough to match. For that reason, it's popular chopped and used raw in salads and slaws. But what if you want to tone down that bitterness?

The answer: roast it or grill it, of course. When it's cooked, the bitterness becomes much more mellow and even slightly sweet or nutty. So next time you're at the market, grab a round Verona or a slender Treviso, two popular varieties of radicchio and see what kind of magic you can cook up.

A Little Inspiration:
• Roasted Radicchio from Martha Stewart.
• Grilled Radicchio from Epicurious
• Braised Radicchio from Cook Think

Related: Fennel and Radicchio Winter Salad with Pecans

(Image: Megan Gordon)