Duck Liver Cheesecake with Red Currant Sauce
Ingredients
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6 Tbsp Butter, melted, divided
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1 Clove Garlic, minced
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1/2 tsp each: Rosemary, Thyme and Parsley, minced
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1 cup Panko Breadcrumbs
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1/3 cup Parmesan Cheese
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Smoked Salt, to taste
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Fresh Cracked Black Pepper, to taste
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6 Duck Livers, washed, deveined*
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Rendered Duck Fat (from breast)**
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2 Shallots, minced
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2-3 Cloves of Garlic, minced
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1/2 tsp each: Thyme, Parsley and Tarragon, finely minced
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Salt and White Pepper, to taste
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1/4 cup of Brandy
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24 oz Cream Cheese, softened
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1-1/2 cups Sour Cream
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3 Eggs
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1/3 cup Heavy Cream
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1 Tbsp Olive Oil 2 Shallots, minced
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1 Clove Garlic, minced
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Fresh Thyme, minced, to taste
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5 Cherry Tomatoes, peeled and halved
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2 Tbsp Balsamic Vinegar
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1/4 cup Red Wine
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1 oz Butter
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2-3 oz Red Currants
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1 Tbsp Honey
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1-2 oz Heavy Cream
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Fresh Herbs or Microgreens for garnish
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*Note: Place livers in a bowl and add milk to cover. Cover bowl and refrigerate for at least 2 hours or overnight.
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**Use duck fat rendered from duck breast for livers.
Directions
Crust
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1
Preheat the oven to 350 degrees F. In a small saut? pan, melt 2 tablespoons of butter. Saut? garlic and herbs until fragrant.
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2
Add breadcrumbs and saut? until browned. Remove from heat and add cheese.
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3
Press the mixture into the bottom of a 9-inch springform pan. Set aside.
Filling
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1
Score the skin of the duck breast in a diagonal direction (do not cut through the duck). Turn the duck breast around and score the breast diagonally in the opposite direction.
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2
Season duck breast with smoked salt and black pepper.
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3
Heat a skillet over high heat. Place the duck breast, skin side down, into hot skillet.
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4
Cook duck breast for 3 minutes on each side. Take the duck breast off of the heat and allow it to rest on a cutting board, skin side up.
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5
Save rendered duck fat to saut? livers.
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6
Drain livers and pat dry. In a large skillet, heat the duck fat (from the seared breast). Add the livers and cook for 3-4 minutes.
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7
Add the shallots, garlic, herbs, salt and pepper and cook until shallots are soft and livers are slightly pink. Add the brandy and cook until liquid has evaporated.
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8
Remove from heat and allow livers to cool.
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9
Once cool, place liver mixture and pan drippings into a blender (or food processor) and process until smooth. Add cream cheese and sour cream.
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10
Add eggs to mixture, processing mixture until smooth after each one. If mixture is thick, add heavy cream to thin. Add salt and pepper to taste.
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11
Slice duck breast into 1/8 inch slices and arrange over prepared crust. Pour cream cheese mixture over duck breast. Bake for 40-50 minutes or until center is set, but still jiggles a little. Move to wire rack to cool, about an hour. While cooling, make red currant sauce.
Sauce
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1
Saut? shallots, garlic, thyme and tomatoes in 1 tablespoon olive oil for 1-2 minutes. Deglaze the pan with the balsamic vinegar and red wine. Add butter, currants, and honey and reduce for about a minute or so. Add heavy cream to taste.
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2
When cheesecake is cool, remove outer ring of pan. Loosen from bottom of pan with a butter knife and transfer to serving plate. Decorate with fresh herbs, microgreens and spoon red currant sauce over top of cheesecake slice.
