Duck Confit Parmentier

Tags

bistrot cooking, comfort food, cottage pie, Duck, duck confit, mashed potato, parmentier, shephards pie

Duck Confit Parmentier is a French twist on classic shepherd’s pie made with confit duck legs, topped with intensely creamy mashed potato and sprinkled with Parmesan.
I often make my own duck confit – it is very easy and you can prepare it in advance but you can also use canned/preserved duck confit. See Duck confit / Confit de canard for a recipe on how to make your own confit.

Serves 4

Ingredients:

For the mashed potato:
1.3-1.5kg / 3 to 3.3lbs large russet or other floury potatoes, peeled and quartered
4 tbsp unsalted butter, at room temperature
60ml / 1/4 cup crème fraîche
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

For the duck layer:
4 duck confit legs, either store-bought or homemade (other dark meat poultry may be substituted, if desired)
1 onion, finely chopped
2 shallots, finely chopped
2 garlic cloves, crushed
2 tablespoons butter
3/4 cup / 180ml red wine
Fresh parsley, chopped, about a handful
30g / 1oz freshly grated Parmesan

Preparation:

Preheat the oven to 180C /375F
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 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, about 5 minutes
Divide the mixture into your four individual baking dishes
Set aside
In a large pot of salted water, boil potatoes until fork tender, about 15 minutes
Drain then squeeze potatoes through a ricer, into a large bowl for smooth creamy mash or simply mash with a fork or masher for a more rustic version
Fold in butter and crème fraîche
Season to taste with salt and pepper
Top the duck mixture with the mashed potato
Using a fork, flatten the potato into an even layer
Sprinkle the Parmesan on top, then bake until golden brown – about 25 minutes
Enjoy!

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La macédoine de legumes / macédoine of vegetables in salad

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bistrot cooking, classic french recipe, hors d'œuvres, macedoine, mayonnaise, salad, starter, vegetables

 

Macédoine is a salad composed of small pieces of fruit or vegetables. Vegetable Macedonia or Macédoine de légumes nowadays is usually a cold salad or hors d’oeuvre of diced vegetables served with mayonnaise. Of course, a good homemade mayonnaise will turn this simple starter salad in something quite special, so I highly recommend taking the time to make your own, if at all possible. I added a few flagolets or lima beans that I had left over to mine but this is not part of the classic recipe so I have not included them below. I wanted to serve my macédoine for lunch so included a few slices of excellent ham freshly shaved by my local butcher.

Serves 4 to 6

Ingredients:

350g / 12oz carrots
150g / 5oz long turnips
180g / 6oz fine green beans
500g / 1 lb fresh peas
Small bunch of chives, chopped finely
450g / 1 lb ham (jambon blanc de Paris) sliced thinly
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
For the mayonnaise
1 egg yolk
1 teaspoon fresh lemon juice
1/2 teaspoon strong Dijon mustard
1 teaspoon white wine or champagne vinegar
3/4 cup / 180 ml sunflower oil
Salt and freshly ground black pepper

Preparation:

Start with the mayonnaise
Combine egg yolk, lemon juice, vinegar, mustard, and 1/2 teaspoon salt in a medium bowl
Whisk until blended and bright yellow, about 30 seconds
Whisking constantly, add 1/4 cup oil to yolk mixture, a few drops at a time, about 4 minutes
Gradually add remaining 1/2 cup oil in very slow thin stream, whisking constantly, until mayonnaise is thick, about 8 minutes (mayonnaise will be lighter in color)
Cover and chill
Can be made up to 2 days ahead
Keep chilled
Salad
Peel the carrots and turnips, trim the green beans and shell the peas
Cut the veggies into small cubes
Cook all the vegetables separately in lightly salted boiling water, 7 minutes for carrots, 5 minutes for turnips, 6 minutes for the green beans and 4 minutes for the peas
Drain, plunge in ice cold water to retain the colour and allow to cool
Combine all the vegetables in a bowl, add chives and mayonnaise
Season to taste and toss lightly
Divide the salad between the plates and add a slice or two of ham
Enjoy!

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Chocolate Mousse – classic French dessert

Tags

bistrot cooking, chocolate, classic recipe, dessert, fiesta friday, French dessert, mousse

I love bistro style food and my favourite French dessert, is one that you  find in every bistro in France – rich, dark chocolate mousse.  My search for the perfect, most luscious and intense chocolate mousse brought me right back to my mother’s old recipe. Although I have a few other chocolate mousse recipes in my repertoire, her recipe is a classic and has that perfect rich yet light flavour that sticks to your taste-buds, then hits you with a wallop of pure dark chocolate flavor. Although this version has an intense chocolate flavour and richness, it is not dense as we include the whipped egg whites to lighten the mousse and give it a beautiful airiness.  As the recipe is classic French, it uses raw eggs. Some people are concerned about raw eggs, but there really is no need to be. When I make anything that uses uncooked eggs, I use the freshest eggs I can get my hands on. Also, since the flavor of the mousse depends on good chocolate, make sure to buy a good brand; you won’t regret it. For today’s recipe I used up a tablet of dark, bittersweet Belgian chocolate and melted it with Cointreau along with good, strong coffee. Yum!

This is the same mousse as above but seeing as I was serving it for Easter dessert, I cut a chocolate egg in two and placed my mousse in the egg before placing in the refrigerator overnight. Just before serving, I shaved some white and dark chocolate on the top. Delicious!

Serves 4 to 5

Ingredients:

115 g / 4 oz bittersweet or semisweet chocolate, chopped
30 ml / 2 tablespoons freshly brewed strong coffee
1/2 teaspoon instant coffee powder
30 ml / 2 tablespoons Cointreau
15 ml / 1 tablespoon Armagnac or Cognac
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
85 g / 6 tablespoons butter, diced at room temperature
4 eggs, separated, at room temperature (you only need 2 whites)
1/4 cup sugar – divided into two
Pinch of salt

Preparation:

In a medium to large bowl set over a saucepan of barely simmering water, melt together the chocolate, coffee, coffee powder, Cointreau, Armagnac and vanilla extract stirring until smooth
Remove the bowl from the heat and let cool
Beat in the softened butter
Place the egg yolks and half the sugar in a bowl and beat at high speed for about 5 minutes (use an electric mixer if possible)
Add the chocolate mixture while on low speed
In a separate bowl, beat the 2 egg whites with the salt until frothy
Continue to beat until they start to hold their shape
Whip in the remaining sugar and continue to beat until thick and shiny, but not completely stiff
Fold one-third of the beaten egg whites into the chocolate mixture with a rubber spatula
Then fold in the remainder of the whites just until incorporated, but don’t overdo it or the mousse will lose volume
Pour into a large serving dish or 5 ramekins
Cover with plastic wrap and chill for at least 4 hours, or overnight
The chocolate mousse can be refrigerated for up to 5 days
Decorate with whipped cream or chocolate shavings just before serving
Bon Appétit!