Wine Braised Duck Legs and Other Winter Comfort

Winter has definitely hit the Milwaukee area with temps in the single digits and below at night the past few days! I don't know about you, but I can't seem to wrap my head around a salads just yet.  All I wantis warm, simple, comfort food.  I haven't wanted to think much about new recipes. Slow roasted meat,roasted and browned poultry, and savory, filling soups are what we've been craving and eating.  I've been making lots of family favorites for the past three weeks.  There's been nothing new or exciting to share until I made these braised duck legs. 

Flavored with bay leaf, garlic and thyme, these are a great do-ahead dish for a special weekend meal. I'm lucky that my husband enjoys duck as much as I do and we are also fortunate to be able to buy individually frozen duck legs at a local store. 

The other thing I'm craving these days......flowers!  A little, colorful primula or cyclamen is all I need to make me smile and take my mind off the the snow and cold outside. 

It seems my mind has been in the clouds lately.  I haven't been able to concentrate much on cooking so maybe that's why I've been sticking to tried and true recipes.

Perhaps it is because we are awaiting the birth of our third grandson within the next few days!  It looks as though our daughter will need to have a C-Section since the little guy has decided the most comfortable position is sideways inside his mother.  By next Monday afternoon I should be a Nana once again!  If you don't hear from me for again for a while you'll know why.  Concentration issues :)

Wine Braised Duck Legs

Printable Recipe

6 large whole duck legs, trimmed of excess fat
1-1/2 teaspoons kosher salt
1 teaspoon freshly ground black pepper

2 teaspoons dried or freshly chopped thyme
1 bay leaf, crumbled
3/4 cup dry white wine
2 heads garlic, cloves separated and peeled
8 fresh thyme sprigs
3 cups chicken or duck stock
2 tablespoons unsalted butter
1 tablespoon all-purpose flour

Combine salt, pepper, 2 teaspoons chopped thyme and crumbed bay leaf in a small bowl.

Season duck legs with with the seasoning mixture and place in a shallow dish. Cover and refrigerate for 24 hours.

Preheat oven to 350F.

Pat duck legs with paper toweling to remove excess moisture.

In a heavy skillet, large enough to hold legs in one layer, cook legs, skin sides down, over medium-high heat for 10 to 15 minutes, or until skin is crisp and nicely browned, removing fat from skillet as it is rendered. Turn legs over and cook until browned on the other side, about 2 minutes. Transfer to a plate.

Pour off fat from skillet and deglaze with wine, scraping up browned bits. Boil until the wine is reduced to a syrup and add the garlic cloves and thyme sprigs. Return duck legs, skin sides up, to skillet and add stock. Bring mixture to a simmer and braise, uncovered, in the oven for 1-1/4 hours, or until legs are very tender. Transfer legs to a baking sheet and refrigerate until ready to finish. The braising liquid can be strained, cooked and reduced to make a sauce. 

Bring duck legs to room temperature.

Preheat broiler.

Broil the duck legs 8 inches from the heat for 3 minutes, until the skin is browned. Serve with buttered noodles, roasted or mashed potatoes.  

Duck Confit Parmentier

I can cross one thing off of my Foodie Bucket List.  I made duck confit this week!  I love roasted duck and duck confit. Whenever I'm in a restaurant that serves duck, I will order it but I've rarely made duck myself and never have I made duck confit.

Don't run away if you don't like duck.  I think this recipe would be perfectly adaptable to roasted chicken thighs or even the dark meat from your Thanksgiving turkey! Parmentier is a French version of Cottage or Shepherd's Pie.  Comforting and oh, so delicious.

 

The driving force behind this recipe was the cookbook that I won from Penny at Lake Lure Cottage....The utterly gorgeous new cookbook from the blogger Mimi Thorisson (www.mimithorisson.com) called A Kitchen in France. Thank you, Penny! I love this cookbook! 

I had fully expected to buy already made duck leg confit at a store in town that I know sells them (I believe Whole Foods and Trader Joes do occasionally have it also) but then I remembered a poultry specialty store in Milwaukee called Tower Chicken that sells duck legs and now, rendered duck fat as well at a very reasonable price compared to the more well-known kitchen specialty shops.

I'm so happy I tried making my own because I know I will make it again. I'd love to try a cassoulet with duck confit next, although my husband would eat the duck leg confit on its own anytime.

The recipe for the duck layer is so delicious too with onions, shallots and red wine and then topped with a lovely layer of seasoned Parmesan mashed potatoes. 

I served a simple side of French green beans sauteed with thyme sprigs...

and we drank a glass of Côtes du Rhône, which was also used to make the duck layer. Again, feel free to substitute any dark meat poultry in this recipe.  Even a rotisserie chicken would work!

Although I made my duck confit with purchased duck fat, click here for a very easy recipe for duck confit from Melissa Clark at Food 52.  I used her seasonings but roasted using the method I found on Epicurious. I'm planning on using Melissa Clark's easy method next time to see how they compare. Mimi Thorisson's method can be found on her website here.  

 

Since this will be my last post until after Thanksgiving, I would like to wish everyone who celebrates a very wonderful and Happy Thanksgiving!

Duck Confit Parmentier

Adapted from A Kitchen in France by Mimi Thorisson
Printable Recipe

Serves 4

For the Duck Layer:

4-5 duck confit legs, either store-bought or homemade (other dark meat poultry may be substituted, if desired)
1 onion, thinly sliced
2 shallots, thinly sliced

2 garlic cloves, minced
2 tablespoons butter
1/4 cup finely chopped fresh parsley
3/4 cup dry red wine

For the mashed potato layer:

2-1/2 to 3 pounds russet potatoes, peeled and cut into quarters
4 tablespoons unsalted butter, at room temperature
1/2 cup sour cream (or creme fraiche)
1/2 cup freshly grated Parmesan cheese
Fine sea salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste

To make the duck layer, remove the skin and bones from the duck legs and shred into small pieces.

In a large saute pan, over medium heat, melt the butter and saute the onion and shallots until light gold and tender, about 5-7 minutes. Add the minced garlic and saute for another 30 seconds. Add the shredded duck meat and parsley and saute for another 2 minutes. Pour in the red wine and simmer to reduce slightly. About 5 more minutes. Transfer the mixture to a baking dish or oven proof skillet so that the duck layer takes up about 1/3 of the height of the dish or pan. Set aside.

To make the mashed potato layer, place the peeled potatoes in a pot. Cover with salted water and bring to a boil. Cook until tender, about 15-20 minutes. Drain the potatoes and either pass throw a potato ricer back into the pot or use a regular potato masher. I prefer using a potato ricer for a smoother texture. Add the butter, sour cream or creme fraiche and grated Parmesan cheese and mash until blended. If too stiff, add milk, a little at a time to make spreading easier.

Top the duck mixture with the mashed potatoes and flatten the potatoes with a fork to make an even layer. I used a piping bag fitted with large star tip to pipe the mashed potatoes over the duck.

Bake in a preheated 375 degree oven until the potatoes are golden brown, about 25 minutes or so.

Duck Confit and Caramelized Endive Tarte

I dined in France tonight!

When I saw the recipe for caramelized endive tarte with duck confit at Karyne's blog Food Addict this week, I knew I had to try it. I made a few calls, and found duck confit at a very nice grocery store about 15 minutes from my home. It was sold in the frozen meat section of the store and there were two confit legs of duck in each package. If you don't know about confit of duck here is a good explanation.

First, halved and cored endive are caramelized in butter and brown sugar water. Then, the caramelized endive are placed in a tart pan in a circular pattern...

Then the endive is topped with the duck confit which has been removed of skin and fat and shredded.

A sheet of puff pastry is rolled to fit the tart pan and brushed with warmed duck fat reserved from the confit which is then baked in a 350 degree oven for about 30 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden.

After baking, the tart is inverted onto a platter and Voila ~ You are transported to a cafe in France!

My husband and I both love duck and we loved this recipe! The caramelized brown sugar-endive adds just the right sweetness and the duck was very tender and delicious.The puff pastry adds just the right amount of crispy texture. I couldn't resist sauteing a few potatoes in the remaining duck fat from the confit. This tart and a little salad made for un dîner très bon !

I hope you try this recipe! Thank you, Karyne!

Duck Confit and Carmelized Endive Tarte

Recipe adapted from Food Addict
Printable Recipe

This was just enough for myself and my husband to share as an entree.

6 heads of endive, washed, cored and sliced in half, lengthwise
2 legs of duck confit, shredded, skin and fat removed
3 tablespoons of unsalted butter
1 heaping tablespoon of brown sugar
1 cup of water
1 sheet of puff pastry, rolled to fit tart pan
salt and pepper

Preheat oven to 350F.

In a large saute pan over medium heat, melt the butter until bubbling and starting to turn brown. Add the halved and cored endive and evenly brown on both sides, adding salt and pepper to taste. In a small bowl, place the heaping tablespoon of brown sugar. Add one cup of water and stir until sugar is dissolved. Add this to the already-browned endive and continue to simmer until the liquid is reduced (I placed a cover on the pan, leaving an opening on one side for this part). The caramelizing process takes about 30-40 minutes.

Place the caramelized endive halves in a circular pattern in a 9 inch tart pan. Top with the shredded confit of duck legs, add some salt and pepper and then top with the rolled out puff pastry, pushing the edges of the puff pastry down the sides of the pan.

Brush the top of the puff pastry with some of the fat reserved from the duck confit.

Bake for approximately 30 minutes or until the puff pastry is golden.