HUNGRY GERALD

It was Thanksgiving Day dinner for two —HG and BSK. Toby, The Wonder Dog, was a frisky and loving companion. HG/BSK’s initial plan was to substitute a Bell & Evans spatchcocked chicken for a turkey and serve it with the usual Gobbler Day accompaniments—-  cranberry sauce, stuffing, mashed potatoes, Brussels sprouts and lots of gravy. Alas, Market Basket was sold out of those wonderful birds and BSK wouldn’t settle for a lesser chicken. So, BSK substituted duck for two meals—modestly priced Bell & Evans duck legs for one meal and expensive duck breasts from another provider for the other. BSK followed a Nigella Lawson recipe (with some tweaks) for the duck legs Nigella calls the dish “Roast Duck Legs With Potatoes”. When sizzled on the range in an oven proof pan, the legs release lots of yummy duck fat. BSK cut potatoes into cubes and added thyme and some other spices plus salt and pepper. When the duck legs and potatoes were modestly browned BSK put  the pan in a 350 degree fahrenheit oven and roasted the duck for two hours (or a bit less). Roasting in duck fat produces  crisp skinned and juicy legs  and potatoes that, in Nigella’s phrase, “are crunchy on the outside and divinely soaked with duck fat on the inside.”  BSK served this with charred brussel sprouts. This was the best Thanksgiving Day dinner HG ever had in HG’s multi years of fressing. Turkey? Fuhgeddaboudit!!!!! On the next night, BSK seared the duck breasts in a cast iron pans. HG insisted they be cooked medium rare in the style of Chez Georges, the renowned Paris bistro. BSK served them with quinoa and a Japanese barbecue sauce. Good–but HG/BSK agreed–they needed more cooking. HG’s insistence often interferes with BSK’s culinary good sense and instincts. At both meals HG/BSK had many glasses of very good red wine. The last glasses were accompanied by Enstrom Butter Toffee and Brittle Brothers Peanut Brittle—the ultimate candies.