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Maple Cider-Glazed Duck with Wild Rice Pilaf and Sticky Toffee Pudding

From the GRP Kitchen: Maple Cider-Glazed Duck with Wild Rice Pilaf and Sticky Toffee Pudding

By Madison Dellinger on December 16, 2024

Written By: Bo Martin, GRP Kitchen Manager

For me, one of the best things about this time of year is, has always been, and always will be the food. This is where all my seasonal favorites come out to play, and nothing brings people together quite like a good meal. That being said, even the classics need a shake-up once in a while. Yes, turkey is a holiday classic, but you’ve had turkey. Goose is also a little Dickensian for my taste. Duck, on the other hand? Duck is always good. I’m an upper Midwestern boy at heart, so autumn and winter mean fresh game and fowl, and plenty of it. Pretty often, the meaty harvest is accompanied by Minnesota’s favorite not-actually-rice, wild rice. And since we at GRP make it our mission to inspire environmental stewards, I’d like to take some inspiration from Sean Sherman, aka The Sioux Chef. At his restaurant Owamni in Minneapolis (where I actually met GRP’s own Jonathan Gray for the first time, small world!), the menu exclusively utilizes ingredients native to the Americas, and has also provided two of the best meals I’ve ever had. Given the difficulty in sourcing some of those ingredients in today’s food system, we’re gonna cheat a bit here, but I’ll stay as true to that idea as possible.

Dessert, though, is another story entirely. The after-dinner course is inherently comfort food, and what better way to get there than the classics? Say what you will about English cuisine in general, but our friends across the pond got at least one thing so, so right: sticky toffee pudding. Nothing fancy here, just possibly the best thing to have on those winter nights.

Maple Cider-Glazed Duck with Wild Rice Pilaf

Serves 2-4

Ingredients:

  • One 5-6 lb duck, patted dry, giblets removed
  • 1 cup pure maple syrup
  • 1.5 cup apple cider (technically only crabapples are native to the Americas, but I press you [get it?] to find crabapple cider at a grocery store)
  • 2 tbsp apple cider vinegar (if you do manage to find crabapples, omit vinegar)
  • 2 tbsp rubbed sage
  • 2 tsp kosher salt
  • 2 tsp sumac
  • 1 tsp paprika (I prefer smoked, but unsmoked is also good)

Procedure:

  • Preheat oven to 350F
  • Trim or truss the duck. You can also tent the tips of the wings and ends of the drumsticks before they begin to scorch if you’re attentive.
  • Sprinkle the salt evenly all over the duck and score the skin, careful to not cut all the way through the skin, in a crisscross pattern over the breasts, thighs, and other fatty parts.
  • Add cider, syrup, and vinegar to a saucepan, bring to a boil, reduce heat to medium-low, and simmer uncovered, stirring occasionally, until reduced by ⅔, about 30 minutes. The resulting glaze should be a sticky, syrupy consistency.
  • Add paprika, sage, and sumac to glaze, simmer for 2 minutes, cover, and turn heat to lowest setting until ready.
  • Place the duck, breast side up, on a rack in a roasting pan. Add a small layer of water in the bottom of the pan to catch fat drips.
  • Place roasting pan on center rack in oven, and roast for 45 minutes. Remove from oven, flip the bird breast side down, and roast for 45 minutes.
  • Increase oven heat to 425 degrees, remove pan from oven, brush the duck all over with the glaze, and place back in the oven for 15 minutes.
  • Once again, remove from oven, brush with glaze, flip the duck breast side up, and roast for 15 more minutes.
  • Remove from the oven when a thermometer inserted into the breast and thigh reads at least 155 degrees F. Duck can go a little more on the medium-medium rare side than chicken and other poultry if you prefer, but that’s up to taste.
  • Let the duck rest for 5-10 minutes before carving.

Wild Rice Pilaf

Ingredients:

  • 1 cup wild rice
  • 2 cups vegetable stock
  • 1 medium sweet potato, peeled and cubed
  • 2 shallots, peeled and quartered (if ramps are available, use ramps)
  • 2 tbsp neutral, high smoke point oil
  • 1 tbsp apple cider vinegar
  • 2 cloves garlic, chopped (once again, if ramps are available, substitute 1)
  • 2 tsp rubbed sage
  • ½ tsp salt (plus more to taste)
  • ½ cup dried cranberries
  • Fresh ground pepper (if available, Virginia pepperweed is a good substitute)

Procedure:

  • Preheat oven to 425F
  • In a saucepan, combine wild rice, cranberries, and stock. Bring to a boil, cover, and reduce heat and simmer for 45 minutes until the liquid is absorbed. Remove from heat and let sit for about ten minutes, then fluff with a fork or paddle.
  • Toss the sweet potatoes, garlic, and shallots (or ramps) in oil, and spread on parchment-lined baking sheet. Sprinkle evenly with salt and sage. Roast for 20-25 minutes, or until tender and browned on the edges
  • Combine sweet potatoes, garlic, shallots, vinegar, and rice. Season with salt and pepper to taste, and serve hot.

Sticky Toffee Pudding

Ingredients:

  • For the pudding:
  • 6 oz pitted dates, chopped
  • 1 cup water
  • 1 tsp baking soda
  • 1.25 cups AP flour
  • 1 tsp baking powder
  • ½ tsp fine salt
  • ¼ cup unsalted butter
  • ¾ cup granulated sugar
  • 2 eggs
  • 1 tsp vanilla extract For the sauce:
  • 2 cups heavy cream
  • 2.5 tbsp golden syrup (can use light molasses if unavailable)
  • ½ cup dark brown sugar (light if using molasses)
  • 1 pinch salt

Procedure:

  • Preheat the oven to 350F, and butter an 9-inch round baking dish
  • Mix cream, brown sugar, and golden syrup (or molasses) in a saucepan, and bring to a boil, stirring constantly to avoid scorching and to melt sugar.
  • Lower heat and simmer, stirring constantly, for about 5 minutes, until thickened to spoon-coating consistency. Pour half of the sauce into the baking dish and place the dish in the freezer to chill. Reserve the other half.
  • Add dates and water to a saucepan, and bring to a boil. Remove from heat and stir in baking soda. Keep this mixture warm for now.
  • In a bowl, whisk together the flour, baking soda, and salt.
  • In a mixer or by hand, beat the butter and sugar together until it is light and fluffy. Slowly beat in the eggs and vanilla.
  • Stir in the flour mixture and date mixture, but be careful to not overbeat the resulting batter.
  • Remove the baking dish from the freezer, and add the batter. Bake for 50 minutes, or until a toothpick inserted in the center comes out with a few moist crumbs attached.
  • Remove from the oven, allow to cool for a few minutes, and serve warm topped with the remaining sauce, and maybe some whipped cream or ice cream if you’re feeling fancy.
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