Blue Duck Tavern Blog

Poached Egg with Field Mushroom Ragout & Foie Gras

Executive Chef Sebastien Archambault grew up in his parents' restaurant in Perigold, Southwestern France, where he used to watch his dad make egg "cocotte", using a little bit of cream amongst a variety of ingredients.

On the weekends, he used to assist his parents in the kitchen and help make poached eggs - while he was only 10 years old! Naturally, he still enjoys making poached eggs, just adding his own spin on the dish, including mushrooms, foie gras and black truffles.

He shares his recipe for Poached Egg with Field Mushroom Ragout and Foie Gras.

Ingredients:

3 oz mushroom ragout (recipe below)

1/2 oz foie gras terrine

1 fresh egg

1 slice, country top white bread

.4 oz butter

.2 oz black truffles

black pepper

Method:

Warm the mushroom ragout and place into a small cast iron (Le Cruset). Crack the egg on top of the ragout and then place into a double boiler and cover. Cook until the egg is medium, then remove. Cut the foie gras into a half moon and place next to the egg.

Toast the bread and spread the butter on top. Cut the bread into 4 batonette pieces and stack next to the cast iron. Season with cracked black pepper and black truffle. Serve.

Mushroom Ragout Ingredients:

1 lb shitake mushrooms

1 lb oyster mushrooms

1/4 lb thyme

5 cloves, garlic

1 cup olive oil

1 cup heavy cream

Method:

Wash the mushrooms, then dice. Mix mushrooms with oil, garlic and thyme. Cook in the oven on a sheet pan for 10 minutes at 350F. Let mushrooms cool down. Chop the mushrooms. Add the cream and cook for 10 minutes. Cool down and store in refrigerator.

 

RECIPE: BDT Peppermint Ice Cream

Pastry Chef Peter Brett's new BDT Peppermint Ice Cream is sure to put anyone in the holiday spirit.  With its beautiful blue color and zestful mint taste, from Zoe's Chocolate's handmade blue and white candy canes, this new treat is a must-have this winter season! 

But for those who want to try it at home, the recipe is rather simple, and makes a perfect dessert for your next holiday gathering! 

Ingredients

1 qt milk

8 oz sugar

12 egg yolks

8 oz honey

1 tsp peppermint extract

1 tsp vanilla extract

1 qt heavy cream

6 oz crushed candy canes

Method

Scald 1 quart of milk with 8 ounces of sugar.  Gradually stir the hot mixture into 12 egg yolks.  Cook over medium heat, stirring constantly until mixture thickens and reaches 175 degrees on a candy thermometer. Stir in 8 ounces of honey and 1 teaspoon each of peppermint and vanilla extracts.  Chill overnight.  Stir in 1 quart of heavy cream and process in ice cream machine. Mix in 6 ounces of Zoe's Chocolates homemade, blue and white crushed candy canes and freeze overnight.

Thanksgiving Day Brussels Sprouts with Pickled Red Onions

Yesterday, Chef de Cuisine John Melfi made his first TV appearance on WUSA9, preparing Brussels Sprouts with Pickled Onions alongside news veteran JC Hayward.

Click here to view the video, plus get the recipe to make this delicious side dish at your own Thanksgiving Day gathering. 

To make reservations for Blue Duck Tavern Thanksgiving Day Brunch, click here or call +1 202 419 6755.

 

 

Recipe for Thanksgiving

With Thanksgiving just around the corner, now is the perfect time to start thinking about your family feast.  To bring a little bit of Blue Duck Tavern into your house this holiday season, we are sharing a traditional stuffing recipe using chanterelle mushrooms and chestnuts. 

Chanterelle and Chestnut Stuffing

Ingredients

1 cup chanterelle mushrooms

1/2 cup cooked and peeled chestnuts

1 onion, diced

4 ounces sausage meat, casing removed

6 - 8 croissants, broken up

2 stalk celery, diced

2 clove garlic, diced

4 tablespoons butter

1 cup chicken stock

3 eggs

1 pint cream

1 teaspoon sage, chopped

salt & pepper

Method

Melt butter in large saucepan.  Add mushrooms, celery, onion and garlic.  Slowly saute until vegetables become translucent.  Season with salt and pepper.  Dice chestnuts and add to vegetables.  Add sausage meat and allow to cool for 8 - 10 minutes over low heat. Add chicken stock, bring to a boil and remove from the heat.  Allow to cool.

When cool, mix eggs, cream and sage in a bowl.  Add broken-up croissants to the vegetable sausage mix, fold in cream and mix well.  Place in a buttered casserole. Bake at 350F for one hour.

Fall Cheese & Charcuterie

Now that the temperatures are cooling down, it's time to settle in the Lounge with a glass of wine and selection of artisan American cheeses.  Together with our cheese & charcuterie expert Lauren Weissman, we have added a variety of new tastes and flavors that pair nicely with fresh bread and sliced meats from the berkel. 

Tumbleweed, Cow's Milk from Fire Spoke Creamery in Lancaster, PA.  Semi-hard cheese, cave-aged for 12 months, rich, brown butter aroma and finishes like a creamy cheddar

Ewe's Blue, Sheep's Milk from Old Chatham Dairy in Old Chatham, NY - Creamy rich cheese made in Roquefort style, aged for 6 months, tangy blue flavor

Camembert, Cow's Milk from Blythedale Farm in Corinth, VT - Mild and creamy with a bloomy white mold rind, handmade using the milk from only a small herd of Jersey cows

Chapelle, Cow's Milk from Chapel's Country Creamery in Talbot County, MD - All natural, bloomy rind cheese aged 60 days, mellow flavor with earthy undertones

Coupole, Goat's Milk from Vermont Butter & Creamery in Barre, VT - Delicate, hand-shaped cheese, mild and dense with a creamy center

Additionally, Lauren has created her own Cinnamon Peanut Butter Brittle and Pinor Noir Jelly to pair with the cheeses. 

To try her recipe for Pinot Noir Jelly at home, you will need: 3.5 cups pinot noir, 1/2 cup of fresh lemon juice, 1 package liquid pectin, & 4.5 cups white sugar.

Combine wine, lemon juice, and pectin in a large saucepot. Bring to a boil, stirring frequently. Add sugar, stirring until dissolved. Return to a rolling boil and continue boiling for 1 minute, stirring constantly. Remove from heat.  Pour into glass jars and allow to cool.

 

 

 

Holiday Mint Sandwich Cookies

Last Friday, our Pastry Chef Peter Brett, appeared live on WUSA9's noon newscast, preparing Holiday Mint Sandwich Cookies.  Peter wowed news anchor JC Hayward with these easy-to-make treats, perfect for the winter season.  The recipe is available on WUSA9's website. 

A Springtime Recipe, as seen in the Wall Street Journal

This past Friday, March 26, the Wall Street Journal ran a story on how restaurants, including Blue Duck Tavern are starting to show a sign of spring.  In the article, I talk about rack of lamb from Elysian Fields, which we will soon serve with a mustard glaze and roasted asparagus. 

Click here to read the article and to obtain the recipe for Blue Duck Tavern's Mustard-Glazed Rack of Lamb with Roasted Spring Asparagus.

 

Holiday Eggnog

Usually on Monday mornings I am sound asleep.  Not today!  In case you missed it, this morning I appeared on WUSA-9's newscast, preparing a holiday eggnog with host Andrea Roane.  This is a great holiday drink that I started making years ago with my family back in Ohio. 

Thanks to our friends at Channel 9 for posting this recipe on their website.  Happy Holidays!

http://www.wusa9.com/rss/local_article.aspx?storyid=94918

A Recipe for Thanksgiving

As the Thanksgiving holiday is approaching, I am happy to share a recipe using one of my favorite fall ingredients - pickled beets! This dish is very simple to make and would go great with your Thanksgiving feast.

Oven Roasted and Pickled Rainbow Beets

Ingredients:

2 lbs rainbow beets (assorted baby beets)

2 tbsp olive oil

1 tbsp salt

1 jalapeno peppers

6 ea green onions

Pickling Liquid

1 cup olive oil

1 tsp tumeric

1/8 tsp cayenne pepper

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp cracked black pepper

1 tsp yellow mustard seeds

1 tsp brown mustard seeds

2 cloves garlic

1 small knob ginger

1 cup rice wine vinegar

1/4 cup brown sugar

1 tsp salt

Method:

Preset oven to 375F.  Cut greens away from beets, reserving for another use.  Leave a half inch of stems on the top of the beets.  Wash and dry the beets.  Place in a bowl with the two tbsp olive oil and 1 tsp salt and toss to coat.  Place the beets on a baking pan and place in the preheated oven.  Back for 15 to 20 minutes, depending on size, until the beets are just soft when pierced with a skewer. Remove from the oven and allow to cool to room temperature.

Slice the jalapeno in half, the long way, and remove the seeds.  Slice the halves into halfmoon and place in a bowl.  Wash the green onions and remove the top green half and reserve for another use.  Cut off the root.  Slice the white onion on the bias and add to the jalapeno.  With a towel, rub the skins off the beets leaving the stem intact.  Add to the bowl with the jalapeno and onion.

To make the pickling liquid, place the rice wine vinegar, brown sugar and salt in a small sauce pan and bring to a boil over medium heat.  Stir to dissolve the sugar.  Remove from the heat and set aside.

Peel the ginger and grate with a fine grater to yield 1 1/2 tsp grated ginger.  Peel and mince the garlic.  Place the olive oil in a small sauce pan and place on the stove, on medium heat, until the olive oil is hot.  Add the tumeric, peppers, cumin, mustard seeds, garlic and ginger.  Saute the spices to release their flavors about one minute.  Remove from the heat and add the vinegar mixture immediately.  Stir and pour over the beet mixture.  Allow to cool to room temperature.  Place the pickled beets in a glass jar.  Cover and refrigerate up to two weeks.

Maine Lobster with Carrot Jus and Summer Vegetables

And lastly...

Maine Lobster with Carrot Jus and Summer Vegetables (yields 4)

Ingredients

2 Maine lobsters

1/4 lb thin green beans

1/4 lb fava beans

3 ea red radishes, sliced

1 small carrot, julienne

2 green onion, sliced on the bias

1/4 lb basil, green or purple

1/4 lb corn shoots

3 cups carrot jus (recipe below)

2 oz lemon oil

salt and pepper

Method

Bring a large pot of unsalted water to a boil and plunge the lobsters into the water.  When the water returns to a boil, lower to a simmer and poach the two lobsters for six minutes.  Immediately remove the lobsters and plunge into an ice bath to stop the cooking process and allow to cool.  Remove the lobsters from the water and allow to drain.  Crack the lobsters open and remove the meat.  Slice the tail into six and split the lobster meat evenly among four bowls.  Dress the vegetables all together, in a bowl, with the lemon oil, salt and pepper.  Place over the lobster meat.  Pour 1/2 cup carrot jus around the lobster salad and serve chilled.

Ingredients for Carrot Jus

1 qt carrot juice, strained

1/2 oz lemongrass, chopped

1/2 oz ginger, peeled and sliced

2 tbsp coconut milk

1/2 jalapeno pepper

1 clove garlic

1/8 tsp cinnamon

1 qt fish fumet

Method for Carrot Jus

Combine all ingredients listed, with the exception of cinnamon and fumet, in a non-reactive pot and reduce by 1/2.  Remove from heat and add cinnomon and any stems left from the basil for the salad.  Let steep for 15 minutes.  Strain through a fine chinois or cheese cloth.  Add carrot reduction to fish stock and reduce by 1/2.  Cool and adjust.  Add seasoning.