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Belgian endive just begs to be stuffed! And usually this is a chilled, salad-y affair. Here’s an idea for autumn or winter: Fill those perfect little boat-shaped leaves with rice and grill them briefly in olive oil to serve as a warm side dish. Grilling the endive brings out a slight (and very pleasant) bitterness that is balanced by the cranberries. This is also really pretty.

Grilled, Filled Endives with Cranberry-Speckled Green Rice

3/4 cup dried cranberries

1 recipe Very Green Rice (see note and recipe below), still warm or reheated

1 to 2 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

20 crisp leaves Belgian endive (5 to 6 tight heads)

Add the cranberries to the warm rice, and mix well.

Place up to 4 tablespoons rice into the cavity of each endive leaf, lightly pressing and molding the filling into place. It will be a slightly delicate process.

Place a large skillet over medium heat. After about a minute, add the olive oil and swirl to coat the pan.

Gently arrange the filled endives to the oil, placing them rice-side-up and sides touching, so they can prop one another up. Cover the pan and let them heat through for just a few minutes.

When done to your liking, use tongs or a spatula to remove them from the pan. Serve right away!

Yield: About 6 servings

Note: You can make the rice up to a day ahead, and store it in a tightly covered container in the refrigerator. Heat it gently in a microwave or a 300 F oven before stuffing the endive leaves.

Very Green Rice

Don’t forget that herbs and all edible green leaves, no matter how small, are vegetables! And embedding them in rice is one of the best stealth delivery systems. In this delicious recipe, the volume of minced herbs is equal to the amount of rice, and no one will know. Sneaky!

This is a great way to use up leftover rice. If you need to cook it fresh, begin with 1 1/2 cups uncooked long-grain brown rice, and make it well ahead of time. It will yield 4 1/2 cups cooked rice.

4 scallions, trimmed cut into 2-inch lengths (whites and greens)

1 cup (loosely packed) each:

Watercress

Flat-leaf parsley

Mint leaves

Cilantro leaves

2 to 3 tablespoons extra-virgin olive oil

1 teaspoon minced or crushed garlic

4 to 5 cups cooked brown basmati rice

1/2 teaspoon salt (or to taste)

3/4 cup lightly toasted pine nuts (optional)

Squeezable wedges of lemon

Pile all the green herbs into the food process and pulverize almost to a paste.

Place a large, deep skillet over medium heat. After about a minute, add the olive oil, and swirl to coat the pan, Add the garlic, and saute by itself for just a minute, then add the processed herbs and cook, stirring, for about 5 minutes.

Add the rice, mixing it in with a fork until the green mixture is uniformly distributed. Stir in the salt, and serve hot or warm, topped with pine nuts, if desired, and accompanied by a squeezable wedge of fresh lemon. Remind people to use it!

Yield: 4 to 6 servings.

Mollie Katzen is the best-selling author of the legendary “Moosewood Cookbook,” Ten Speed Press. Her most recent title is “Salad People and More Real Recipes: A New Cookbook for Preschoolers & Up,” Tricycle Press, 2005. To contact her, visit her Web site www.molliekatzen.com.