02.08.10

Cooking with Love…

Posted in Duck, Lentils, strawberries at 12:51 am by cecilia

Tonight’s dinner serves two purposes. My friend L and I haven’t seen each other for a while. And I missed her birthday celebration a few weeks ago. To me, friends connect best around food. Cooking up a tasty meal is my classic way to treat a good friend; dinner is frequently the best canvas for a colorful conversation. A few days ago, my other friend D asked me what I would recommend him to cook for his girlfriend on Valentine’s Day. Suddenly, the light bulb in my head lit up. Documenting L’s dinner as a suggestion for next weekend’s romantic cooking is the answer.

For the record, I think every day should be Valentine’s Day. Feb 14th has become so commericalized it lost its authenticity. This menu is meant to impress friends or swoon over your object of affection on any speical day. It looks like a lot of work, but professional skills are not required to produce these tasty treats. It’s important to learn a few short cuts that enhance the flavors without compromising on quality, and make things taste like you’ve been slaving away for hours to develop. I suspect if you cook this for your special someone, magic could happen!

Warm Lentil Salad

Serves 3-4      (Printer-friendly version here)

Ingredients

1 cup French green lentils
1/2 cup red quinoa
4 cups chicken broth
2 Tbsp sherry cooking wine
1 carrot, peeled and chopped
1 leek, rinsed and white part diced
1 clove garlic, minced
2 tsp fresh thyme, chopped
1 bay leaf
1 bunch frisee
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp apple cider vinegar or sherry vinegar
Salt to taste

1. Rinse the lentils and discard any stones or foreign objects.
2. Rinse the quinoa soak in a small bowl with the lentils for an hour.
3. Strain the lentils and quinoa.
4. In a saucepan, saute the leek and garlic with olive oil. Add a pinch of salt. Stir for a few minutes until the leek becomes translucent.
5. Add the carrot. Stir and mix.
6. Add the sherry cooking wine, fresh thyme, and the lentils and quinoa after straining.
7. Cover the ingredients with chicken broth. Stir well.
8. Add the bay leaf.
9. Reduce the heat to low, cover and simmer until the lentils are just tender and have absorbed most of the broth, about 30 minutes.
10. Add a pinch of salt as needed.
11. Before serving, add the apple cider vinegar and frisee.

Duck Breast with Black Currant & Blueberry Sauce

There are a couple of special ingredients in this dish. First, I recommend magret duck breasts which are basically the breasts of mallard or Barbary ducks that are raised to produce foie gras. Without getting into a philosophical debate, breasts from other ducks or even chicken breasts will do the job just as well. You may need to adjust the time required to cook them due to the size and thickness of the meat.

Another ingredient worth mentioning is demi-glace. It’s a classic French sauce that’s traditionally made with veal stock. Making this sauce is extremely time-consuming and labor intensive. I usually get this from a specialty food store either locally or on the internet. I keep the extra sauce in the freezer. If you can’t find demi-glace, a cooked down beef stock can be substituted.

I use black currant and blueberry preserve in this recipe simply because that’s what I have in my fridge when I prepare for the recipe. Cherry or various kinds of berry preserves should taste just as good.

Ingredients

Serves 2        (Printer-friendly version here)

1 boneless whole magret duck breast, about 1 lb.
2 Tbsp olive oil
2 Tbsp chopped sundried tomatoes
1 Tbsp thyme, chopped
1 Tbsp rosemary, chopped
2 Tbsp balsamic vinegar
1 tsp salt
1 clove garlic, minced

For the sauce

1/2 cup black currant and blueberry preserves
1 cup pre-bought demi-glace
1/2 tsp Dijon mustard

1. Using a sharp knife, cut several diagonal slashes in the skin of the duck breast. Do not cut through to the meat.
2. Place the breast in a non-reactive dish with a lid.
3. Add the olive oil, sundried tomatoes, thyme, rosemary, balsamic vinegar, garlic, and salt to the breast. Mix well and coat the duck breast evenly with the marinade.
4. Cover and refrigerate for at least 2 hours, or overnight.
5. Remove the duck breast from the refrigerator 30 minutes before cooking.
6. Meanwhile, make the sauce in a saucepan over medium-low heat by combining the preserves with demi-glace and Dijon mustard. Slowly simmer it until thickened, for about 30 minutes. Remove from the heat.
7. Heat up a skillet until it’s smoking hot. Place the duck breast on the skillet, skin side down.
8. Lower the heat to medium. Cook until the skin is crisp, about 10 minutes.
9. Turn over the breast and cook for another 8 minutes. Adjust the time depending on the size of the breast.
10. To test, the temperature of the meat should register at 150°F for medium.
11. Transfer the breast to a cutting board and cover loosely with aluminum foil for 5 minutes.
12. Reheat the berry sauce over low heat.
13. Carve the duck breast at a slight angle across the grain into thin slices.
14. Arrange on a warmed platter and pour a little berry sauce on top.
15. Serving suggestion: serve with a warm lentil salad and some crusty bread.

Strawberry Cream Tartlettes

Serves 2        (Printer-friendly version here)

1/2 cup strawberries, hulled and diced
1 whole strawberry, for garnish
6 blackberries, for garnish
3 Tbsp sugar
4 oz graham crackers
1 Tbsp brown sugar
1/2 stick unsalted butter, melted
1 bar (8 oz.) cream cheese, room temperature
2 Tbsp sour cream
1/4 cup bittersweet chocolate chips

Tool: 1×4 non-stick tartlet pan with removable bottoms

1. Mix the diced strawberries with 2 Tbsp sugar in a small bowl.
2. Let the strawberries macerate at room temperature for an hour.
3. Preheat the oven to 350°F.
4. In a food processor, blend the graham crackers with brown sugar until coarse crumbs form.
5. Add the melted butter to the crumbs and process until the crumbs come together.
6. Press the crumbs into the tartlet pan.
7. Bake for 10 minutes until the tartlet shells turn golden brown.
8. Add the chocolate chips on the tartlets after removing them from the oven.
9. Cool the tartlet shells completely.
10. Using a mixer (or a hand mixer), whip the cream cheese and sour cream until fluffy. Add 1 Tbsp sugar and whip some more.
11. Drain and preserve the strawberry liquid. Gently fold in the strained strawberries to the cream mixture.
12. Spoon the filling over the tartlets.
13. Garnish the tartlets with a halved strawberry and some blackberries.
14. Drizzle the strawberry juice on top and serve.
15. Tarts can be prepared ahead of time, covered, and refrigerated.

♥ May everyday be a Valentine’s Day for you and your loved one! ♥

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