Hudson Valley Foie Gras is a duck farm located in Ferndale, New York, our old stomping ground when we has a house in Youngsville. It’s amazing they’re still in business because for a while there was wild-eyed, fanatic pressure from some animal rights people because they believed that perhaps the ducks were forced fed (with a funnel) as some are in France, to achieve the large, fat rich liver that is prized for foie gras. We visited the farm and didn’t see anything but some ducks eating in a sheltered area. They probably waited until we left 😀 No need, ducks and geese are greedy birds and practically force feed themselves if their intake is not controlled. Anyway, they raise Moulards, a cross between Pekin and Muscovy ducks. They taste like duck but don’t have the same flavor or texture of the French bred Barbary duck. Of course like any food animal, environment and what they eat determine these characteristics.
Anyway, fresh herbs are back and my herb garden is brimming with the fragrant greens of parsley, cilantro, sage, rosemary, thyme, oregano, tarragon and bay leaf too! I love it! I managed to find some of the worse pearl onions I’ve ever cooked with at the supermarket. I won’t go into it but Jesus, Mary and Joseph!
I love using the Emile Henry tajine because after browning the duck, herbs and onions on the stove top, it goes seamlessly into the oven with top for perfect roasting.
Today Jessie was “sous chef” and she was pretty good; not once did she knock over the camera or jump up on the counter or whine. So un-IT of her. She mostly stared into the refrigerator, looking for cheese 🙂
Our latest food craving is spaghetti squash. It’s fairly new to me because I never encountered it overseas, although I did see it on food blogs and was interested.
It’s fun and easy to make. Simply cut the squash into thick rings, salt both sides and allow it to sit for about 20 minutes. Wipe the salt from the rings with a paper towel, then roast at 400 F for about 45 minutes.
Gently scrape the strands from the rings with a fork and place inside of a bowl.
Brown some diced pancetta in butter with shallots and garlic, then finally toss in some cubed tomato to warm. Toss this mixture with the squash.
Just eat this. Forget about the duck. I made this meal weeks ago. Time to move on 😀
Apparently the ancient Egyptians discovered that geese and ducks would stuff themselves stupid in order to put on enough weight to fly hundreds of miles without stopping (at migration time). When eaten, these fat fowl (especially the livers) tasted better than regular birds. It is not uncommon for the animals to eat themselves to death, quite literally. I’m sure they are fed with a funnel, but what protesters don’t realise, is that aquatic birds have no gag reflex (like humans do) – they swallow all their food whole, including quite large fish, which is then ground up with stones and grit (swallowed by all wild and domestic birds and some other animals) in the gizzard. Geese will sulk and die if they are not happy, so farmers have to make a big effort to keep them sweet. Here’s a link to a review of Hudson Valley, which I added to my blog post on foie gras some years ago – it’s positive:
https://www.seriouseats.com/2010/12/the-physiology-of-foie-why-foie-gras-is-not-u.html
Delicious duck – I wish I was having that instead of chicken tonight!
It’s such a treat for us to have something other than chicken, beef or pork. So airline 🙂
Reblogged this on Vietnam Travel & Trade Portal .
Spaghetti squash with pancetta and tomatoes looks very tasty.
Very nice Daniel. Next time I think a nice pesto with rocquette.
Absolutely love roasted duck, my grandma used to make an amazing one!
With this farm, I think I’ll stick to legs, foie gras and magret.
Jessie is adorable! One of our dogs is always there when I cook as well. Smart as occasionally food does fall from the sky. He’s great on clean up. 🙂
Thank you Virginia. Jessie’s no Labrador and is therefore an odd eater. Much of what falls to the floor, I have to pick up, unless it’s cheese 🙂
Neither is Murphy. Guinness, who is part lab, shows up once in awhile but Murphy just loves standing by.