Roasted Duck Breast

Today’s adventure in cooking was a roasted duck breast. Back in October, Hubs and I went to the Philly Food Fest (which was amazing and filling and eye opening) where I had duck breast for the first time. The sample was so gosh-darn good that we bought the last duck breast they had on the spot. It kept very well in the freezer this whole time.

I didn’t want to do to much to the duck breast, so I followed the instructions of a UK specialty poultry outfit, Gressingham Duck. Best decision I could have made. 

Starting with a duck breast, I salted and seared the fatty side in a pan until it was lightly browned. Gressingham didn’t specify whether or not I should sear the other side, so I salted and seared it just to be on the safe side. WORTH. IT. After that I was able to put it in the oven on a raised rack for the remaining fat to drain off.

I am nothing if not resourceful. Because I used my other baking pans for the brussel sprouts and dessert, you’ll notice I had to rig a cooling rack to a cake pan. Worked like a charm. 

Ten minutes in the oven at 400 degrees, and then five or more minutes to rest after cooking created the most moist, tender looking duck breast I have ever seen.  I was a little worried by the amount of blood that oozed out when I cut it, but after tasting it, I couldn’t care less.  The duck breast was cooked all the way through and had a beautiful dark pink hue.

Hubs was impressed. That is a major benchmark for whether or not any given food product will get a second chance in this household. This recipe was easy and quick enough that I would be able to make this on short notice provided that the duck was thawed.

Duck breast has a naturally soft texture, like a rare steak. It melts in your mouth and the seared fatty bits added the most delectable crispy crunch. To finish the meal, I created a mac and cheese of my own creation, and citrus-honey brussel sprouts based on a recipe from Two Peas and Their Pod. 

I am very excited to try some more recipes to share with you all!

Back To It

I am so bad at this.  I plan on blogging again.  Now that I am unemployed, I have ample time.  However, I seem to spend that time playing Candy Crush than doing anything productive like cleaning or organizing the mess I left in the office.  

Yesterday I painted my nails. I know. Thrilling. Over the past few days I have stained and varnished a couch table. That’s a little more productive. I have made some fairly impressive meals, some of which my husband ate, some of which were only appreciated by my palate.  

In addition to doing daily yoga and going to gym more frequently (okay, at all), I want to blog more about the things I do with my puppies and some of the things I cook.  Hubs got me a Canon Eos T5i DSLR for Christmas so you can probably expect some food porn pics up and about as well.