Duck With Pear Sauce And Wilted Greens Recipes

Steps:

• Cook honey and balsamic together over medium-high heat in a large saute pan, about 5 minutes. Toast walnuts in a small skillet; set aside to cool.
• Pile greens on a platter. Stir mustard into balsamic-honey dressing, then whisk in about 1 cup extra-virgin olive oil; pour over greens. Season greens with salt and pepper and garnish with walnuts, pomegranate seeds, shavings of Parmesan, and shallot.

Steps:

• Toss the mesclun with the cubed Asian pear and salad dressing; season with salt and pepper and divide it among 4 dinner plates.
• Make sure to remove fat and skin from each duck breast half. Lightly season with salt and pepper.
• Heat a non-stick skillet until hot. Add olive oil and duck breasts, skin side down. Saute for to 4 minutes on one side and 2 minutes on the other for very rare duck (or longer if you don't like it rare).
• Remove duck to a cutting board. Add spices to skillet with tomatoes and stock. Simmer for 2 to 3 minutes or until reduced. Remove from heat.
• Cut the duck in thin diagonal slices and fan them over the salad in the center. Spoon the sauce over the duck and serve, garnished with olives.

Steps:

• To make the spoonbread, preheat the oven to 400 degrees. Butter a 2-quart souffle dish and set aside. Place the water in a medium saucepan over medium heat, add the salt and bring to a boil. Stirring constantly, add the cornmeal in a slow, steady stream. Cook, stirring, for 2 minutes. Scrape into a mixing bowl, stir in the butter and set aside to cool to lukewarm. In another bowl, whisk together the eggs, buttermilk, baking powder, baking soda and pepper. Gradually stir the egg mixture into the cornmeal mixture. Scrape into the prepared pan and bake until set, about 40 minutes.
• To make the duck, heat the oil in a large skillet over medium-high heat. Add the duck and sear on both sides. Set aside. Add the onion and carrots to the skillet and cook for 3 minutes. Add the mushrooms and cook for 5 minutes. Add 1 cup of wine and deglaze the pan.
• Add the remaining wine and the broth. Bring to a boil. Reduce to a slow simmer. Add the duck and cook until medium rare, about 10 minutes. Remove the duck, slice on the diagonal and set aside. Increase the heat and simmer until liquid has reduced to 1 1/2 cups. Strain through a fine-mesh sieve. Season with salt and pepper. Place in a medium skillet and add the duck. Set aside.
• While the sauce is reducing, make the collard greens: cook the bacon in a large pot over medium heat until the fat is rendered. Remove the bacon with a slotted spoon. Add the greens and cook, stirring until wilted. Add the water, cover the pot, turn heat to low and cook until the greens are tender, about 15 minutes. Season with salt and pepper. Keep warm.
• Heat the duck and the sauce just until warmed through. Arrange the duck slices on each of 4 plates, spoon some of the sauce over them and sprinkle with parsley. Divide the collard greens and the spoonbread among the plates. Serve immediately.

Steps:

• Trim excess fat from duck legs, reserving fat for the sautéed kale. In a large bowl marinate duck legs in wine with bouquet garni, covered and chilled, 2 hours.
• Transfer legs to a plate, reserving wine and bouquet garni. In a heavy kettle large enough to hold legs in one layer heat oil over moderately high heat until hot. Pat legs dry with paper towels and season with salt. Cook legs, skin sides down, 20 minutes, or until skin is crisp and mahogany-colored, removing fat from kettle as it rendered with a metal bulb baster (or very carefully pouring it off). Turn legs and cook until browned on other side, about 2 minutes, transferring as browned to a plate.
• Pour off all but about 2 tablespoons fat from kettle and sauté vegetables with salt to taste, stirring occasionally, until tender and lightly browned, about 15 minutes. Add duck legs, skin sides up, with parsley sprigs and reserved wine and bouquet garni and simmer, covered, 1 1/2 hours, or until tender. Braised duck legs may be prepared up to this point 2 days ahead and chilled, covered. Reheat mixture over low heat, adding 1/3 cup water, before proceeding with duck preparation.
• Make roasted pears and onions during last hour of duck braising:
• Preheat oven to 400°F.
• In a shallow baking pan large enough to hold onions and pears in one layer melt butter in oven and swirl pan to coat. Add onion halves, cut sides down, and quarters, and bake 30 minutes. Add pears, cut side down, to pan and bake 20 minutes, or until pears and onions are tender and lightly browned. In a cup stir together lemon juice, honey, and salt and add to onions and pears, tossing to coat.
• Transfer duck legs to a warm plate and keep warm, covered with foil. Discard parsley sprigs and bouquet garni and strain liquid into a 1-quart measuring cup, reserving vegetables. Let liquid stand until fat rises to top and skim and discard fat. Return liquid to kettle and simmer until reduced to about 2 cups. Add beurre manié, a little at a time, whisking, and boil 2 minutes. Stir reserved vegetables and minced parsley into sauce and heat through if necessary.
• Serve duck legs, with sauce spooned over them and garnished with parsley sprigs, with roasted pears and onions.

Steps:

• Trim excess fat from duck breasts. Heat a 12-inch heavy skillet over high heat until very hot. Pat breasts dry and season with salt. Put breasts, skin sides down, in skillet and reduce heat to moderate. Cook breasts 20 minutes, or until skin is crisp and mahogany-colored, removing fat from skillet as it is rendered with a metal bulb baster (or very carefully pouring it off). Turn breasts and cook about 2 minutes for medium-rare or to desired doneness. Transfer breasts to a plate and keep warm, covered loosely.
• While duck breasts are cooking, peel pear and cut into 1/4-inch dice. Pour off all but about 1 tablespoon fat from skillet and sauté pear until lightly browned, about 1 minute. In a measuring cup stir together apple juice and cornstarch. To pear add Calvados or Armagnac. Stir in cornstarch mixture, peppercorns, demiglace or bouillon cube, and thyme and simmer, stirring, 2 minutes, or until slightly thickened.
• Serve duck breasts, sliced, with sauce spooned over them and garnish with thyme sprigs.