Five Spice Sea Scallop With Seared Foie Gras Served On Parsnip Puree Finished With A Port Wine Fig Sauce Recipes

TRIO OF DUCK ROASTED BREAST, LEG CONFIT AND SEARED FOIE GRAS WITH HORSERADISH PARSNIP PUREE AND HUCKLEBERRY BRANDY SAUCE

Steps:

• On 4 warm dinner plates pipe the horseradish parsnip puree through a piping bag slightly off center on each plate. Spoon or ladle the huckleberry brandy sauce around the parsnip puree. Place a quarter of the hot duck confit around 1/2 of the parsnip puree towards the center of the plate. Place the sliced duck breast on top of the confit in a fanned circular fashion. Place 1 piece of foie gras on top of each breast and garnish with a sprig of parsley and fried parsnip strips.
• Duck Breasts:
• Preheat the oven to 400 degrees F.
• French each breast by scrapping the meat, skin and tissue off of the wing bone while keeping it attached to the breast. With the heel of a chef's knife make a clean break on the bone without creating any fragments. (You can also purchase boneless duck breasts if you desire.)
• Score the skin on each breast by lightly cutting through the skin but not into the meat. Make a criss cross pattern to allow for easy rendering. Preheat a large saute pan and add the canola oil. Season the duck with salt and pepper on all sides. Place the breasts into the skillet, skin side down. Turn the heat down to low and allow the breasts to render for 5 to 10 minutes, or until the skin is very crispy.
• Turn the breasts over and place in the oven and cook for 2 to 4 minutes or until desired doneness. Remove the duck and allow it to rest for 1 to 2 minutes. Slice the breast into 4 to 6 equal pieces and serve immediately. The duck should be served medium rare.
• Preheat the oven to 225 degrees F.
• Place a heavy gauge skillet on the stove over medium heat. Add 1 ounce of canola oil to the pan and add the duck legs, skin side down. Turn up the heat to make sure that the legs are rendering but not burning. Render the legs for 15 to 20 minutes or until the skin is completely crispy. Remove the legs from the pan, saving the duck fat, and place the duck legs into a deep oven proof dish. Place the onions, garlic, celery and thyme over the duck legs. Poor the rendered duck fat over the legs and add as much canola oil as you need to completely cover the duck. Cover the dish with tin foil and place in the oven for 3 to 4 hours. Remove the dish and allow it to cool. Remove the duck legs from the fat and remove the skin. With a fork or small knife begin to shred and remove all the meat from the legs. The meat should be very tender and shredded into thin even pieces. This can be done days in advance and reheated when needed.
• Heat a saute pan over very high heat and allow it to get extremely hot. Place the foie gras into the pan with no oil and saute for 30 to 40 seconds on each side or until crisp and golden brown. Serve immediately.
• In a large sauce pot add the potatoes and the parsnips and season with salt. Cover with water and bring to a boil. Allow it to simmer until the potatoes are tender. Drain the potatoes and parsnips and place into a blender or food processor. Add the heavy cream to form a mashed consistency. Add the horseradish and puree until very smooth and season with salt, to taste. Do not over mix. Place the mixture into a pastry (piping) bag and reserve hot for the assembly.
• In a small saucepan add all ingredients together and bring to a boil. Reduce by 2/3 and season with lemon juice and salt.

PAN-SEARED FOIE GRAS WITH FIGS AND PORT WINE SAUCE

Steps:

• Carefully pull apart the 2 lobes of the foie gras with your hands and remove the veins that are lodged between them. Using a sharp knife dipped in boiling water, cut each lobe into 1-inch medallions, approximately 6 (4-ounce) slices. Score the top of each medallion in a diamond pattern and season with salt and pepper. Sear the medallions in a hot, dry pan for 30 seconds per side, seasoned side down first. Remove to a warmed platter lined with paper towels to drain.
• Lower heat to medium and pour out a bit of the rendered duck fat. Fry the bread rounds until brown, about 2 minutes each side, set aside. Wipe out the pan and coat with olive oil. Brown the figs, cut side down, then add the shallots and tarragon. Cook for 2 minutes. Deglaze the pan with port, juice of 1/2 orange and balsamic vinegar, cook down, about 3 minutes. Finish off the sauce with butter, a pinch of sugar, orange zest, salt and pepper.
• Combine the endive, arugula and chives together in a small bowl. Toss with remaining orange juice, lemon juice and olive oil, season with salt and pepper. Arrange a handful of salad on each plate and lay the toast on top. Carefully place a foie gras medallion on each toast round. Top with figs, drizzle with port wine sauce. Garnish with chives and serve at once.

SCALLOPS AND FOIE GRAS SAUTEED WITH WILD BERRIES AND VINO COTTO

Steps:

• Heat the oil in a medium skillet over medium-high heat. Season the scallops with salt and pepper. Cook the scallops until they are brown and warm at the center, about 1 minute per side. Drain the scallops on a plate lined with a paper towel.
• Wipe out the pan. Return it to the stove and heat over high. Season the foie gras with salt and pepper and sear on each side just until brown and firm, 1 to 2 minutes per side. Drain the foie gras on paper towels.
• Reduce the heat to medium and add the shallots to the skillet. Cook, stirring until softened, then add the sugar. When the sugar has melted and browned, add the balsamic and demi-glace. Reduce the sauce by 1/3 then add the vino cotto.
• In a separate pan gently reheat the scallops and foie gras for 1 or 2 minutes. Once they are warm, slice the scallops. Arrange the foie gras on 2 plates, top with sliced scallops then drizzle each plate with sauce. Garnish each portion with mizuna and serve.

SCALLOPS WITH PARSNIP PUREE

Steps:

• Combine the parsnips, milk and a large pinch of salt in a medium saucepan. Cover and bring to a simmer, then reduce the heat to low and cook, stirring occasionally, until tender, about 20 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a blender or food processor, add the butter and puree. Season with salt and pepper.
• Meanwhile, heat 2 tablespoons vegetable oil in a large nonstick skillet over high heat. Season the scallops with salt and pepper, add to the skillet and cook, undisturbed, until well browned, about 3 minutes. Flip and cook through, about 1 more minute. Divide among plates.
• Add the remaining 1 teaspoon vegetable oil and the hazelnuts and thyme to the skillet. Cook, stirring and scraping up the pan, until the nuts are toasted, about 1 minute. Scrape the mixture into a bowl.
• Return the skillet to the heat and stir in the honey and 1/4 cup vinegar. Cook, swirling the pan, until thick, about 1 minute.
• Thinly slice the shallot and put in a large bowl with the remaining 1 tablespoon vinegar, 1/4 teaspoon salt and a few grinds of pepper. Add the watercress and toss. Add the watercress salad and parsnip puree to the plates. Sprinkle with the hazelnut mixture and drizzle with the honey syrup.

FIVE-SPICE SHORT RIBS WITH CARROT-PARSNIP PURéE

Steps:

• Preheat oven to 350°F. Season ribs with 1 1/2 teaspoons salt and 1 1/4 teaspoons pepper and let sit at room temperature for 30 minutes. Rinse one carrot and one parsnip and cut into thirds (no need to peel); reserve.
• In a large bowl, toss short ribs with flour until evenly coated. In a large Dutch oven or other oven-safe pot over medium-high heat, heat oil. When oil is hot, add 3 or 4 short ribs and sear on all sides until browned, about 2 minutes per side. Transfer to a plate and continue working in batches to sear remaining short ribs. Pour out all but 1 tablespoon oil from Dutch oven and reduce heat to medium. Add tomato paste and five-spice powder and cook, stirring, until fragrant, 1 minute. Add wine to pot, scraping up brown bits with a wooden spoon. Bring cooking liquid to a boil, reduce to a simmer, and cook until liquid is reduced, about 10 minutes.
• Add reserved carrot and parsnip chunks, broth, onion, garlic, reserved cilantro stems, bay leaves, and seared short ribs. Nestle the short ribs in the cooking liquid to cover. Bring the liquid to a simmer on the stovetop, then cover and transfer to the oven to braise for 2 hours. Uncover pot and continue to braise in the oven until beef is very tender and falling off the bone, 30 to 60 minutes more.
• Meanwhile, set a large pot of salted water to boil. Peel and roughly chop remaining carrots and parsnips. Add cook carrots and parsnips to boiling water and cook until tender when pierced with a knife, about 15 minutes. Drain vegetables and return them to the pot. Add milk, butter, remaining 1 teaspoon salt, and nutmeg. Use an immersion blender, potato masher or a fork to blend or mash to desired consistency (it can be as smooth or chunky as you like). Taste and adjust seasoning. Place a lid on the pot and reserve until ready to serve.
• When short ribs are done, transfer them from cooking liquid to a plate. Set a strainer over a large bowl, and strain cooking liquid. Discard solids and pour strained cooking liquid back into Dutch oven. Set pot over medium-high heat and simmer until liquid is reduced by half and coats the back of a spoon, about 10 minutes. Taste and adjust seasoning. Gently reheat carrot-parsnip purée.
• Serve short ribs over carrot-parsnip purée, topped with its sauce and a sprinkling of cilantro.