Menu in Purple and Orange

[hrj]

It wasn't actually planned that way, but sometimes a theme just emerges. Originally, I was just planning to do the regular shopping and pick up something for my "try some new produce every week" thing. So when I bought a duck leg on impulse, I figured that my "new produce" would be a Seville (bitter) orange to do something orange-duckish. And then when I was passing the marked-down-produce rack, there was a bag with a couple small heads of purple and orange cauliflower which looked amusing. And then as I was heading for the onions, I passed by the mangos and felt a craving. But it wasn't until I was putting things away in the fridge and taking inventory for doing the week's menu planning that I noticed the bag of purple potatoes that I'd picked up a couple weeks ago and hadn't gotten around to yet and got a really wacky idea.

Purple and orange. I had a purple and orange theme. Orange duck. Purple potatoes. Purple and orange cauliflower. Mango pudding ... and didn't I have a bag of plum puree in the freezer that needed to be used up sometime this year? Yes.

So here's the menu -- the recipes are descriptive rather than prescriptive. I got the basic outline for the orange duck out of Larousse Gastronomique but improvised a bit around it.

Layered Mango and Plum Pudding

In a microwavable bowl, take half a cup of mango puree (about half a large mango). Mix with 2 Tbsp ground almonds. (I used up the chestnut flour and haven't gotten around to buying more, so I'm branching out on the nut-thickened puddings.) Add about 1/4 tsp powdered ginger to taste.

In a different bowl, take half a cup of plum puree. Sweeten to taste. Mix with 2 Tbsp ground almonds and 1 tsp rose water. To intensify the color a little, add a couple teaspoons of blueberries.

Microwave for one minute, let sit for a minute, then stir. Repeat until well thickened.

In a clear parfait glass, alternate layers of plum and mango until all the pudding is used. Refrigerate until ready to serve.



Orange Duck

Juice a Seville orange and half a lemon and set the juice aside. Trim all the white pulp off the orange rind and blanch for a couple minutes in boiling water, then slice into thin strips. Set aside, reserving a small amount for the potatoes as well.

Finely chop one slice of bacon and 1/4 onion. Begin to saute in a coverable frying pan over a low heat. Add a duck leg and turn it occasionally until it begins to brown. (Directions may be different for a whole duck.) Add 1/2 cup white wine (well, ok, actually I used hard cidar, but the effect will be similar) and allow to cook down slightly. Then add 1 cup chicken stock and simmer, covered, until the duck is cooked. (I'm not certain I let it cook long enough at 30-40 minutes -- it was done all the way through, but wasn't loosening from the bone the way a chicken leg would have in that amount of time.) In a separate pan, caramelize 1 tsp sugar moistened with a slight splash of white vinegar. (Why vinegar? I'm not sure -- that's what LG called for. It worked.) Strain the cooking stock from the duck into the carmelized sugar and add the reserved juice. Reduce until thick, then add the orange peel. (Actually, I added the peel with the juice to let the flavors mingle longer.) Ladle the sauce over the duck to serve.

Purple Potatoes with Orange BIts

I don't remember which variety of potatoes these were -- some local organic farm with the new crop coming out. They aren't just purple-skinned, but a rich dark purple all the way through. Boil the potatoes until tender then slice. In a frying pan, melt 1 tsp of butter (this is for one serving -- scale up for more) and add 1 tsp minced garlic, 1 tsp stone-ground mustard, and 1/2 tsp minced Seville orange peel. I also added the strained-out onion and bacon bits from the duck broth because I couldn't stand wasting it. Toss the sliced potatoes in this until well coated.

Purple and Orange Cauliflower

Steam equal amounts of purple and orange cauliflower florets. Dress with salt and olive oil. (Alternately -- although I didn't have the resources to do this -- grate a little orange-colored cheddar cheese over the purple cauliflower and dice a little Drunken Goat cheese (which has a purple rind) over the orange cauliflower.) Note: if you acidify the purple cauliflower it will turn more of a magenta color.