Duck Breast with Orange Cranberry Glaze for Holiday Dinner

The holidays are upon us and this year will undoubtedly be filled with more in-home entertaining as we all do our part to stay safe in 2020. We would like to do our part in helping to make this season as merry and bright as possible so we're sharing some of Chef Anthony's favorite recipes throughout our Holiday Hosting with Friends Series. Next up, in the U.S. we’re all well-acquainted with turkey, ham, maybe a little Bratwurt for dinner, but what about Duck with Orange Cranberry Glaze? Impress your friends and family by adding a little excitement to your holiday dinner— we could all use it this year!

Roasted Duck Breast with Orange Cranberry Glaze served with Butternut Squash Gnocchi and Minted Bacon Brussel Sprouts (Serves Four)

Recipe by: Chef Anthony Marino

Ingredients:

• 4 duck breasts 4 -6 oz
• 2 oz olive oil
• 1 tsp kosher salt
• ¼ cup fresh thyme
• ¼ tsp Black pepper
• ¼ cup freshly squeezed orange juice   
• 1 orange zested  
• ½ cup sugar
• 12 oz fresh cranberries
• 8 oz Brussel sprouts, shaved
• 2 tbs mint, chopped
• 4 oz bacon diced
• 2 cups butter nut squash
• 8 oz ricotta cheese
• 8 oz all-purpose flour 
• 2 tbs sage, chopped 
• 4 oz butter

Method- Duck:

1. Pre heat oven to 375 degrees. For the duck breast we want to pat it dry and pierce the skin. This helps it not to crisp up and to render the skin easily.
2. In a hot pan add 2 oz of oil, season duck with salt and pepper place skin side down and crisp for 3 minutes. Flip duck over and do the same on the other side.
3. Place duck in the oven for 15 minutes to finish cooking. Allow duck to rest for 15 minutes before carving

Method- Butternut Squash Gnocchi:

1. Roast squash until fully cooked then mash and set aside
2. Combine ricotta cheese, salt, pepper, flour, and eggs;  mix until dough forms
3. Fold the butternut squash into the dough
4. Place dough on counter and kneed until dough pulls back adding additional flour as needed
5. Let dough rest for 10 minutes then scale out gnocchi
6. Boil for approx. 2 minutes until the gnocchi floats
7. Transfer gnocchi to a plate adding the melted butter and sage and top with cheese

Method- Minted Bacon Brussel Sprouts:

1. Cut into thin slices and top with diced bacon on a sheet tray
2. Drizzle olive oil and roast in the oven at 425 degrees for about 20-25 minutes until crispy (TIP: the crispier the better in Chef Anthony’s opinion)
3. Finish them with fresh chopped mint, salt and pepper

Method- Orange Cranberry Glaze:

1. Combine the orange juice, zest, sugar and ¾ cup of water until dissolved
2. Lower the water to a simmer and fold in the fresh cranberries
3. Watch for the cranberries to pop then shut heat off; the sauce will begin to thicken

Method- Plating: 

1. Place the gnocchi in center, garnish the bacon Brussel sprouts around the edge of the plate
2. Slice duck breast into serving pieces and plate on top of the gnocchi
3. Top Duck breast with Cranberry sauce and serve!

Pan-Roasted Duck Breast with Braised Leg, Lacinato Kale Ragout, Wild Rice with Thyme and Butter, Cranberry Duck Jus

Recipe by: Chef Bill Fuller (big Burrito Restaurant Group)

Serves 2 as full entrée or 4 as lighter entree

• 1 ea. Whole Duck, butchered as below into Legs and Breasts
• ½ C. Parsnip, diced small (be sure to remove woody inner core)
• ½ C. Turnip, diced small
• 2-3 ea. Cloves garlic, sliced
• 1-2 # Dinosaur (Lacinato) Kale or similar green
• 2 ea. Braised Duck Legs
• Splash of Duck Stock if necessary
• 2 Tbs. Butter
• Wild Rice with Thyme and Butter
• Duck Jus
• Cranberry Sauce
• Salt and pepper

1. Fabricate duck as described below. Make stock and reduce to duck jus.
2. Make Wild Rice and Cranberry Sauce.
3. Render duck breasts in a wide skillet, retain all fat.
4. Turn breasts and finish to medium. Reserve warm.
5. Add fat back to skillet. Add parsnips and turnips. Cook over medium heat until nearly soft and well-browned.
6. Add garlic allow to whiten, then add greens. Cook until soft.
7. If the pan gets dry, splash with Duck Stock. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Swirl in butter.
8. Spoon Wild Rice onto plates.
9. Spoon greens ragout over top.
10. Stir 1-2 Tbs. Cranberry Sauce into Duck Jus. Heat then stir in 2 Tbs. butter.
11. Slice breasts into eight to ten slices across the grain.
12. Fan breast across greens.
13. Lay leg on plate.
14. Drizzle with sauce.

Wild Rice with Thyme and Butter

• 1 C. Wild rice
• 1 ea. Shallot, minced
• 3 C. Chicken or duck stock
• 1 Tbs. Chopped fresh thyme
• 1 Tbs. Butter

1. Place all ingredients except butter in a pot. Bring to a simmer and keep heat at barely a simmer. Cook for 45 minutes to 1 hour until rice is tender but not destroyed.
2. At end of cooking, season with salt and pepper. Allow time for rice to absorb seasonings from cooking liquid.
3. Drain and stir in butter.

Cranberry Sauce

• 1 bag Fresh Cranberries (Go ahead and make two bags. It will be great on toast later and it keeps forever in the refrigerator)
• ½ C. Brown sugar
• Zest and Juice of 1 oranges
• Zest and Juice of 1 lemons
• Apple cider

There are two ways to make this, chunky and smooth. For chunky, omit the last step. I prefer chunky, but often people accustomed to traditional cranberry sauce balk at the texture.

1. Place everything except cider in a non-reactive pot. Cover by approximately ½ inch with apple cider. Bring to a boil then reduce to a simmer.
2. Cook with stirring until cranberries pop. Sauce should thicken nicely. Serve warm or cold as desired
3. For smooth sauce, run through small holed blade in a food mill. In the absence of a food mill, push through a medium mesh strainer.

Duck Butchery

1. Clean out duck cavity. Reserve heart, gizzard, and neck. If desired, reserve liver for a separate use.
2. Lay duck on back. Cut skin between leg meat and breast meat. Follow skin along edge of leg meat down to back. Turn duck onto breast.
3. Cut around ‘oyster’ of the muscle where the thigh attaches to the hip and break leg free of body at joint. Follow bone with your knife to the back of carcass. Repeat on other leg. Trim fat on legs to fit meat. Keep trimmings to render (see below).
4. Place duck on back with head end towards you. Make two cuts the length of the breastbone and gently pull meat back. With your boning knife, follow wish bone down either side of the neck cavity.
5. Turn duck tail towards you. Finish freeing breast from ribcage and wishbone.
6. Place breasts skin side down. Trim around breast to edge of meat. Trim flat tendon off meat. Keep fat trimmings to render (see below).
7. Turn breast over. Score evenly in a1/4” checkerboard pattern cutting into but not through skin.

Leg Cooking

1. Season both sides of leg with salt, pepper, and chopped fresh thyme. If you have fresh bay leaves, lay one against the flesh side of each leg. Lay skin side up in shallow baking pan. Allow to marinate overnight.
2. Drain any liquid that comes off the legs.
3. Place in 375° oven and cook until skin is lightly browned, about 45 minutes. Pour off rendered fat and reserve for another use.
4. Add enough stock to half cover leg (about up to the skin) and return to oven. Reduce temperature to 325° and cook until very tender, about an hour. (If stock nearly reduces dry, replenish with a little water or stock. When done, leg should be glazed by the stock and very tender.)
5. Remove and reserve. Do not discard braising liquid. Save to add to stock pot or use as stock elsewhere.

Breast Cooking

1. Heat an iron skillet on medium heat. Season breasts with salt and pepper. Place skin side down and cook slowly, rendering the fat. Pour off fat as it accumulates, reserve.
2. When skin is browned and crispy and has begun to shrink from the edges of the breast meat, turn breast and cook to desired temperature – medium is best.
3. Remove from skillet and allow to rest for 10 to 15 minutes. \

Duck Stock

• 1 Duck Carcass
• 1 large onion, chopped
• 1 carrot, copped
• 2 stalks celery, chopped
• 1 head garlic, split
• 1 tsp. Black peppercorns
• 1 bay leaf
• Sprigs fresh thyme

1. Trim excess fat from carcass. Place carcass, neck, and organs on a sheet pan. Place in 450° oven. Roast until bones are well browned.
2. Drain fat (reserve) and place bones into stockpot. Place onions, carrots, and celery onto sheet pan and return to oven. Brown well.
3. Place garlic and herbs in pot. Add browned vegetables. Cover with cold water and place on stove.
4. Bring to a boil and reduce heat to a minimal simmer. Skim off all fat and foam. Cook at least 4 hours, preferably overnight.
5. When done, skim fat and strain stock through a coarse mesh strainer. Strain again with a fine mesh strainer. Discard bones

Duck Jus

1. Place duck stock in a straight-sided pot that accommodates stock with about an inch to spare. Place on burner and bring to a boil.
2. As stock comes to a boil, skim off fat and foam. Reduce to a low boil.
3. As soon as the stock has reduced enough to fit into the next sized straight-sided pot, strain through a fine-mesh strainer into that pot.
4. As soon as it comes to a boil, skim scrupulously. Repeat procedure until stock becomes thickened. When nearly sauce consistency, add ¼ C. sweet white wine (Riesling or Gewürztraminer) and continue reducing.
5. At sauce consistency, place 1 tsp. microplane grated ginger and four diced figs into sauce. Stir in 1 Tbsp whole butter.

Fat Rendering

1. Place all skin and fat trimmings into a pot. Cover with water.
2. Bring to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until nearly all water is evaporated.
3. Strain and reserve fat.

Chef Anthony Tips 

The key to making the orange glaze perfect is the Thermador induction cooktop. It makes difficult sauces seem painless with rapid boil, but also the ability to get to the industry low without scorching the sauce.

The key to roasting this duck breast to perfection lies in the convection roast feature of the Thermador wall oven, along with the amazing roast probe this holiday dish is cooked to perfection in no time at all.

I recommend using the Gaggenau convection steam for my Brussel sprouts. The steam oven keeps them crispy and tender while remaining bright green and full of nutrients.