DUCK WELLINGTON

Duck Wellington

This is a take on the classic Beef Wellington which is typically a preparation of filet steak coated with pate' and duxelles (finely minced mushrooms and herbs sautéed in butter and reduced to a paste) then wrapped in puff pastry and baked.  Some recipes include wrapping the coated meat in a crepe.

Since the term Wellington is sometimes used to describe other dishes where a protein is baked in puff pastry, for this one we used a Moulard Duck Magret breast baked in phyllo dough. 

Moulard Duck Magret Breast 16 oz

We coated the breast with a Country-style Dijon mustard and used Hen of the Woods for the duxelles.  In lieu of the crepe, we wrapped this in turkey bacon.  The entire prep was then wrapped in phyllo dough and brushed with an egg wash and baked in the oven.  Although the duck was well done, it was very moist and tasty.   

Ingredients:

16 oz duck breast, skin removed, and cut into two 8-oz portions
Kosher salt
Cracked black pepper
1 Tablespoon olive oil
10 oz wild mushrooms
1 Tablespoon fresh thyme, roughly chopped
3/4 teaspoon garlic powder
6 slices turkey bacon
1/3 cup spicy/coarsely ground Country-style Dijon mustard
4-5 layers of phyllo dough
1/3 cup melted unsalted butter (for phyllo dough)
Egg wash (1 egg yolk and 1 teaspoon water)

Directions:

Chop the mushrooms and pulse in a food processor to form a coarse texture.  Scrape the mixture into a hot, dry pan. Add fresh thyme, garlic powder, salt and pepper.  Cook to allow the water from the mushrooms to evaporate.  When dry, set mushrooms aside to cool.

Chopped Hen of the Woods

 Season duck breast with salt and pepper.  Cut into two portions.

Heat olive oil in a large pan.  Sear the duck, about 1 to 1-1/2 minutes each side. Remove and allow duck to cool.

Roll out plastic film and lay out 3 slices of turkey bacon, slightly overlapping each other. Spread half of the mushroom mixture evenly in a thin layer over the turkey bacon. Repeat for the second Wellington.

Brush both duck breasts with the Dijon mustard. Place each duck breast in the middle of each prepped turkey bacon/mushroom mixture.

 

Duck Breast Ready to Roll

Keeping a tight hold of the plastic film from the outside, roll the turkey bacon over duck breasts into a tight barrel shape and twist the ends to secure the plastic wrap. Refrigerate for about 30 minutes.

Working quickly, prepare phyllo dough.  Brush each layer of dough with melted butter, then place another layer of dough on top; continue this to make about four-five layers of dough. Keep unused layers covered with a damp cloth to prevent dough from drying out.  Unwrap one of the duck logs from the plastic wrap and place it in the middle of the phyllo dough.  Fold over the dough to seal.  Place seam side down on a plate and brush egg wash over the top. Repeat the process for the second Wellington. Chill bundles again for approximately 20-30 minutes.

 

Wrapped Bundles Ready for the Oven

To Finish:

Pre-heat oven to 425 degrees. 

Remove Wellington bundles from fridge.  Brush with egg wash.

Line a roasting pan with parchment paper and then lightly butter it with unsalted butter.    Place bundles on pan seam side down and roast for about 25 minutes.   Let bundles set for about 10-15 minutes before serving.

 

 

PORTOBELLO MUSHROOM and RAINBOW SWISS CHARD LASAGNA

Mushroom and Rainbow Swiss Chard Lasagna

Rainbow Swiss Chard

This doesn't have the heaviness of a typical tomato and cheese lasagna dish. 

I made a béchamel sauce using lower fat (2%) milk and used a low-fat cream cheese in lieu of the mascarpone cheese that is sometimes found in mushroom lasagna recipes. My farmers market had Portobello mushrooms, beautiful rainbow Swiss chard and freshly made ricotta cheese (I guess the lower-fat milk and low-fat cream cheese were canceled out by the home-made ricotta).  Nonetheless, it was all good.  I made the recipe in a 9x7" glass Pyrex dish versus the 9x13" version.  A spray/drizzle of white truffle oil as the lasagna was resting added an extra treat.

This is a perfect full meal for a meatless Monday...or any day...and could easily serve 4-6 people. The average food cost is about $5.99 per serving.

INGREDIENTS

For the Béchamel Sauce:
4 tablespoons (1⁄2 stick) unsalted butter
1⁄4 cup AP flour
1 1⁄2 cups low-fat (2%) milk
1 cup vegetable broth, preferably home made
1/4 teaspoon freshly grated nutmeg
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon white pepper

For the Filling:

6 Tablespoons olive oil 
1 1⁄2 cups yellow onions, thinly sliced
3 small leeks, white parts only (about 1 cup), thinly sliced
1/4 cup minced garlic
4 sprigs thyme
1/8 teaspoon kosher salt
1/8 teaspoon black pepper
6 cups thinly sliced rainbow Swiss chard leaves
2 1/2 pounds baby Portobello mushrooms, thinly sliced
1⁄3 cup low fat cream cheese, softened
2 tablespoons sherry wine vinegar
1/2 tablespoon balsamic vinegar
8 lasagna noodles, cooked (according to directions on package)
1 Tablespoon unsalted butter (to coat glass Pyrex dish)
16 oz. ricotta cheese, preferably home made
1 cup parmesan cheese, finely grated
White truffle oil/spray (optional) for drizzling on top while lasagna is resting

DIRECTIONS

For the Béchamel Sauce:
In a medium saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat. Add the flour and cook, stirring constantly, for 2 minutes; don't let the mixture brown. In another saucepan, warm the low-fat milk.  Slowly add the milk to the pan containing the butter and AP flour, while whisking.  Then add the vegetable broth, continuing whisking until smooth. Simmer, whisking occasionally, until the sauce is smooth and resembles a thick cream, about 10 minutes. Remove from the heat; add the nutmeg, salt and white pepper. Cover the surface of the béchamel with waxed paper to prevent a skin from forming.

For the Filling:

In a large skillet, heat 2 tablespoons of the olive oil over medium-low heat. Add the onions and cook, stirring often, until soft, about 10 minutes. Add the leeks, garlic, and thyme sprigs and cook, stirring often, until the leeks are soft, about 7 minutes. Season with salt and pepper.  Remove the thyme sprigs. Stir in the rainbow Swiss chard and cook until wilted, about 2 minutes. Transfer the mixture to a food processor. Pulse several times until finely chopped, and then transfer to a large bowl. In another large skillet, heat enough olive oil to coat pan over medium-high heat. When the oil is very hot, add one-third of the mushrooms (do not crowd mushrooms) and cook, stirring often and seasoning with salt and pepper after mushrooms are half-way cooked, until they are well browned, about 10 minutes. When cooked, put mushrooms in a large bowl and continue to repeat cooking the rest of the mushrooms.

After all of the mushrooms are cooked, place them in a food processor and pulse several times.  They should still have some texture.  When done, transfer the pulsed mushrooms to the bowl with the onion mixture. Add the béchamel sauce, softened cream cheese, and the vinegars and stir until thoroughly combined. Season with salt and pepper.

To Finish:

Preheat the oven to 400°F.

Bring 4-6 quarts of water to a boil and add salt to taste.  Add the lasagna noodles and cook until tender. Drain.  Add a touch of olive oil to noodles to prevent from sticking.

Butter a 9x7 inch (versus the 9-by-13-inch) glass baking dish. Lay two noodles in the bottom of the dish. Trim to fit, if necessary. Top with one-third of the mushroom filling, one-third of the ricotta, and one-third of the grated cheese. Repeat with the remaining noodles, mushroom filling, ricotta, and grated cheese (there isn't a layer of noodles on the top). Bake the lasagna until the center is very hot and the top is lightly browned, about 40 minutes. Remove from oven and lightly drizzle/spray truffle oil (optional) on top.  Let rest at room temperature for 15-20 minutes before serving.

INTERNATIONAL CHEFS CONGRESS 2013

 

Entrance at Pier 57 Chelsea NYC

The International Chefs Congress, sponsored by StarChefs.com, was held this year at a new space at Pier 57 in NYC.  Also, for the first time, there was a SMOKE Barbecue Competition that was presented by Chung Jung One the night prior to the conference.  

The Congress was fun, again.  The best part(s) was that I met Steven Raichlen, who I consider the best BBQ chef on the planet (a la Planet Barbecue).  Also, I met David Burke and Brian Voltaggio, both chefs who recently competed on Top Chef Masters.  According to David, he got screwed on the ketchup deal and Brian was again the number-two guy.  Both were extremely nice and pleasant to talk to.  A few photos follow.

View of NYC from the pier

Judges at the SMOKE BBQ Competition

Steven Raichlen, Primal Grill, Miami, FL

Andy Husbands, Tremont 647, Boston, MA

Chef David Burke, David Burke Group, NYC

Chef Johnny Iuzzini, Sugar Fueled Inc

Keegan Gerhard, D Bar Desserts, Emcee of Pastry Competition
 

Chef David Burke and me

Chef Michel Richard

Chef Brian Voltaggio



Travis, Spike and Mike of Top Chef Seasons

Jeffrey Steingarten, Food Critic of Vogue, NYC

Chef Vaughn Trannon of Trannon Culinary

Chef Brian Voltaggio and me

Shaving Truffles