Pan-Seared Duck with Cherry-Port Reduction

A fitting 350th post! This was the inaugural dish for using our new Wusthoff steak knives (thanks Paul and Erin!) and it was also New Year's Eve, so we kinda went all out. This was actually the second course (after a cream-based oyster stew from Saveur) but I kind of procrastinated on that, and I know we made some significant modifications but I can no longer remember what they were. I may blog it anyway and kind of make it up. That's the kind of quality you can expect at DCCDI.

All of this was served with some rustic bread and truffle butter. We're so fancy.

Edit: I guess this is the 350th post, but not the 350th PUBLISHED post. We have 9 unpublished drafts. Whatever. It's still impressive.

Ingredients

• duck breasts
• 1/2c pitted cherries. We used sour cherries, which I think is better, though some use sweet.
• 2tbsp tawny port
• 1tbsp honey
• one small-medium shallot, finely chopped
• 1/2c chicken broth
• salt

Start out by preparing the duck breasts. Take a sharp knife and score the skin side in a diamond pattern. You're aiming to cut all the way through the skin without cutting through the meat. Do this across the entire duck breast. Pat the duck breasts dry.

Preheat the oven to 400. Now take a clean, dry pan. Place the breasts in the pan, and put over medium or medium-low heat. I know, right? The thing is that you want to render the fat out of the skin so you have a really crisp skin, and that takes a lower heat. So what you do is cook the breasts on the skin side for 15-20 minutes over this low heat. As the pan fills with duck fat (and it will SEVERAL times), you should pour that off into a separate container - you'll want to save that. You don't want too much more than 1/8" of fat in the bottom of the pan at any time. Also, move the breasts around from time to time so they don't burn and so they brown evenly.

Once they're a deep golden brown on the skin side (and 115* on a thermometer, apparently, though we eyeballed it) you want to flip them to the non-skin side and cook for 30 seconds. Flip them BACK to the skin side and pop them in the oven for about 5 minutes (in the pan if you're using stainless steel or cast iron). You're aiming for an internal temperature of 125, though we just did 5 minutes. Take the duck breasts off the pan and put them on a rack to rest (or at least set them aside on another plate).

Now create the sauce. You should pour off all the remaining duck fat in the pan so you have just enough to cook the shallots. Toss the shallots in there and cook until they're getting translucent, then add everything else (cherries, port, honey, broth). Bring to a simmer and reduce to a glaze, then salt to taste.

Thoughts: We didn't hit "rare" for the duck, or even a "medium rare," but more like a "medium." Which was fine, though - the duck was still fantastic. The skin was really delicious (so success there) and the duck was still tender and flavorful. I was surprised how easy this was. When I get duck in a restaurant, they usually sear it quickly rather than with this method, so the layer of fat on top is actually quite thick - I think I like this method more, actually, because you can theoretically get that crisp duck skin and still have rare or medium-rare duck. We just need to work on the timing. Also, the steak knives made short work of this. A testament to our cooking skills, or the sharpness of the knives? Not sure.

Disaster Index: 1/10

Naan

We were making Chicken Tikka Masala (from Cook's magazine - awesome recipe!) and needed something to go with it. So instead of rice, we went for naan.

Ingredients

• 2 tsp yeast
• 1 tsp sugar
• 1/2c warm water
• 2.5-3c flour (until the dough is about right so it doesn't stick to absolutely everything - we did about 2.5c then used an extra 1/2c for kneading
• 1tsp salt
• garlic powder (we used like 1/2-1tsp), or any other flavorings you might want
• 1/4c vegetable oil
• 1/3c greek yogurt (we used nonfat and it worked perfectly)
• 1 egg

Combine water, sugar, and yeast. Set aside. Combine all the other ingredients except the flour, then add the water/yeast/sugar mixture. Mix well, then add about 2.5c flour and fold together with a wooden spoon or your hands or whatever. Turn out onto a counter and knead for 3 minutes, adding as much flour as necessary to make this possible. Grease the bowl you were using originally and toss the dough back in there. Let it rise for about 45 minutes to an hour.

Now, without punching the whole thing down, grab a chunk of dough (as large as you want to make the naan - about 3" diameter will make about a 6" naan) and press / roll it out to about 1/4" thick. Spray a frying pan with cooking spray (you REALLY don't want too much oil here!) and heat until just smoking, then add the naan. You can kind of start the pan heating while you roll out the naan. Anyway, once the naan is on the pan, turn it to low and cook for 3-4 minutes, then flip it and do the same. You can flip it early if you think the naan is getting browned a little early - it will depend on how hot your stove is. If you flip it TOO early, you can always re-brown that side (we did this several times). Repeat with the remaining dough. sprinkle with salt as they come off the pan.

Thoughts: The texture of these was really great. I think they could have used a bit more salt, personally, and I think Claire agrees with me on that. In the future, it would be cool to add chopped chives or something. But otherwise, these turned out great. I would do this again.

Disaster Index: 1/10

Banana Muffins With Stuff

Lots of stuff.
Ingredients

• 2 very ripe bananas
• 1/2c oil
• 1c white flour
• 1tsp salt
• 3/4tsp baking soda
• 1/2tsp baking powder
• 2 eggs
• 2/3c brown sugar
• 1/2tsp cinnamon
• 1 tsp vanilla
• ~1/2c chocolate chips
• ~1/2c raisins
• ~1/4c sunflower seeds
• ~1/3c chopped walnuts

Preheat the oven to 375. Then basically mix everything except the various "add-ins". Then add in the chocolate chips, raisins, sunflower seeds, and walnuts. We actually soaked the raisins in some boiling water for ~5 minutes then drained them before adding them. You can add just about anything to these - we just added what stuff we had on hand.

Distribute to 12 muffin cups. Bake 20 minutes.

Thoughts: These were awesome. I wouldn't change anything.

Disaster Index: 1/10

Glazed Salmon

I should probably blog something.

Ingredients

• Salmon accouterments:
• Salmon fillets (we used about 6oz per person, 12oz total)
• 1/2 tsp brown sugar
• 1/4 tsp kosher salt
• scant 1/4 tsp cornstarch
• pepper
• 1 tsp vegetable oil
• Glaze:
• 1.5 tbsp brown sugar
• 1.5 tbsp pomegranate juice
• 1 tbsp balsamic vinegar
• 1/2 tbsp mustard
• 1/2 tsp cornstarch

Preheat the oven to 300. First prepare the glaze. Mix all the ingredients in a microwave safe container and microwave about 30 seconds, then stir and microwave another 10. Just get it boiling, basically, so the cornstarch will thicken a little. You can do this on the stove, but why bother?

Pat the salmon fillets dry, and sprinkle with black pepper. Coat with the brown sugar, salt, and cornstarch mixture. Heat 1 tsp vegetable oil in a pan until just smoking. Cook 1 minute on the flesh side, then 1 minute on the skin side. Then take it off the heat and cover with the glaze. Be careful - if it's hot (it should be), the glaze might pop a little. Throw the whole thing in the oven. Did I mention the pan should be oven safe? Because yes, it should be. Bake for 7-10 minutes, until a thermometer in the deepest part of the fillet reads 125ish. Remove and serve.

Thoughts: Really good. I would experiment with different glazes, though, too - possibly some kind of miso or asian barbecue? Anyway, the salmon was cooked perfectly. I might go a LITTLE less long on the flesh side and a LITTLE longer on the skin side so that the skin is crispy, but we can think about that.

Disaster Index: a solid 1/10

Ratatouille

Why did it take us so long into our cooking careers to make this? Well, because Claire doesn't really like vegetables. Or ratatouille. So we got a bunch of eggplants in our farm share and I was sick of making baba ganoush, so I made something more substantial. To be fair, though, eggplants are kind of a waste of a vegetable. The big Western eggplants aren't nearly as flavorful as Asian varieties, and I gather that they're nutritionally nil. Maybe the skins are healthy. They're purple. That's something, right? This recipe makes enough for about 8-10 servings. But we had to use the eggplants.

Ingredients

• One yellow onion, sliced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 2 medium eggplants, cut into 1/2" dice, skins on
• About 2-3 zucchinis (depending on size), 1/3" half-moons
• about 1.5 lbs of cherry tomatoes or similar, cut in half
• 1 tsp dried thyme
• 1 tsp dried basil
• olive oil, salt, pepper
• goat cheese and couscous, to serve

To a pan, add the yellow onion and a lot of oil. Saute over medium heat while you cut up the eggplants, stirring occasionally. Add the garlic. Add the eggplants, basil, adn thyme after 5-10 minutes and stir around (while you do the zucchinis). You may want to sprinkle a little salt to help encourage the eggplants to give up their water a bit. After 3-5 min, add the zucchinis. Cook another 10 minutes or so, adding oil if necessary. When the zucchinis are starting to get cooked, add the tomatoes. At this point, my ratatouille was getting a little dry, so I added about 1/2c of stock, turned heat to low, and covered. I left that for about 10-20 minutes, checking on it occasionally. When everything looked like it was starting to meld, I uncovered and turned the heat up to evaporate a little of the stock. Salt and pepper to taste. Serve over couscous with a dollop of goat cheese.

Thoughts: This was really easy, relatively healthy, filling, and vegetarian? What the hell? I would make this again. Maybe Claire not so much. Maybe next time I'd try Japanese eggplants. That would also allow me to make a much smaller (single) serving if I used one Japanese eggplant, one zucchini, etc. Anyway, if you let this stuff cook down long enough, it's great. Actually, it might be possible to make this in a slow-cooker. Or maybe it would turn to mush. I'm not really sure. Hm. Something to ponder.

Disaster Index: 1/10

Rustic Pear Tart

Maybe more of a general use recipe. Hm.

Ingredients

• Crust
• 1/2c wheat flour
• 1/2c AP flour
• 4 tbsp butter
• 3 tbsp buttermilk
• 2 tbsp water
• 1/2 tsp salt
• 2 tsp sugar
• Filling
• About 3 pears, cored and cut into 1/2" slices
• Also two nectarines, or I guess whatever you'd like to add
• 1.5 tbsp corn starch
• 3 tbsp brown sugar
• ~1/4 tsp cinnamon - we kind of eye-balled it.

Make the crust: Mix the dry ingredients, and cut in the butter. When it's a sort of coarse, sandy texture, add the liquid and stir to combine. Don't over-mix or knead. Then form into a 4" disc and wrap in plastic. Place in the fridge for an hour or two. I think we let ours go for about 3-4, actually - doesn't hurt it to go a bit longer.

When you're ready to make the tart, preheat the oven to 425 and make the filling: slice up the pears (and other fruit you want to use) and toss with the corn starch, brown sugar, and cinnamon. Roll out the crust with a lot of flour until it's about 18" wide and 8" tall. Place crust in a baking pan on parchment. Arrange the pears in a line running the length of the crust, and fold the crust up over the pears. It won't cover them completely, which is fine. Dot the top with a little butter (optional) and place in the oven. After 15 minutes, reduce the temperature to 350 and continue to bake for another 30 minutes.

Thoughts: It went surprisingly well, even though it includes pastry dough. I guess you just have to not be afraid of butter. I would make this again. And I may wind up doing that because we have like 10 pears going bad in our fridge right now.

Disaster Index: 1/10

Chocolate Coconut Milk Ice Cream

Ingredients

• 1.5 cans of coconut milk (about 1.5 to 2c)
• 1/4 c semisweet or bittersweet chocolate chips
• 3 tbsp unsweetened cocoa powder
• 2 tsp cornstarch
• 1/2 c sugar
• 1 tsp vanilla extract
• pinch of salt

Pour a small amount of coconut milk (about 1/2c) into a pot. Add the chocolate chips, cocoa powder, sugar, and salt. In a separate bowl, mix another 1/4c of coconut milk with the cornstarch. Set the pot with the chocolate on the stove on medium heat until the chocolate chips have melted and the mixture is starting to boil a little. Remove it from the heat and stir in the cornstarch mixture, then return to the heat and bring to a boil. After about 10-30 seconds of boiling, remove the whole thing from the heat and add the vanilla extract and all the remaining coconut milk.

Let the mixture cool in the freezer for about 20 minutes, then churn in an ice cream maker once you think it's cool enough.

Thoughts: 20 minutes in the freezer is not enough to cool the mixture down initially, so when we churned this, it didn't freeze. So I removed everything from the ice cream maker, put it in the refrigerator again, reset the process, and waiting 8 hours to re-churn it. Second time's a charm. The flavor is really nice and chocolatey, but the coconut flavor started to come through the second day. I would count this among the most successful ice creams we've ever made. I wonder if coconut milk wouldn't be a good base for other flavors.

Disaster Index: 1/10