On the Menu: All Hail the Humble Potato

Use a spiral cutter to spin the potatoes to create the long strands needed to form the tube. Using a 12” length of aluminum foil, fold it lengthwise until it is 6” wide.

Wrap the 12” x 6” piece of aluminum foil around a cardboard tube from a paper towel roll and paper clip the ends of the foil so it doesn’t unravel.

Loosely wrap the long strands of potato around the foil then slide the foil off the cardboard tube being careful not to crush the foil form.

Fry the potato tube while wrapped around the foil in 325°F oil until lightly golden, making sure to turn the potato tube while frying so it colors evenly.

Remove from oil and place on paper towels to drain.

Remove the paper clips off the ends of the foil and collapse the foil to remove from inside the potato tube. 

Pat the duck legs dry with paper towels.

Prick the skin all over with the tip of a knife. This allows the underlying fat to run out when heated.

Liberally salt the duck legs all over, cover and let rest at room temperature for 30 minutes.

Wipe the excess salt with a paper towel and place the duck legs in a casserole dish just big enough to hold the legs.

Spoon the solid duck fat evenly over the top of the duck legs. Cover the casserole with aluminum foil and place in a cold oven.

Turn the oven on to 285°F. Do not preheat the oven. Let the legs slowly warm up with the oven.

After one hour remove the foil and cook for one hour more. Remove from the oven. Let cool for 15 minutes.

Remove the legs from the fat and remove the skins. The skins can be crisped in the oven and eaten as a chip.

The leftover fat will be used to sauté the spinach and morel mushrooms. Pick the meat off the legs and lightly shred. 

Gently rehydrate mushrooms with 2 oz of water.

Remove the mushrooms from the water before they become too soft.

Rough chop the mushrooms after they are rehydrated.

Heat 6 oz of butter in a large sauté pan over medium high heat until the butter foams but is not brown.

Add the garlic and spinach. Sauté until all the spinach is wilted.

Place the spinach/garlic on a paper towel to drain.

Heat 4 oz of butter in the same pan and add the duck confit.

Sauté to reheat the duck and add a little color, add the spinach back to the pan and toss with the duck. Add the mushroom and sauté over a medium flame for one minute. Remove all the ingredients from the pan.

Add the cherry/currants in brandy off the flame and return the sauté pan to the flame. The brandy may flambé so be careful. It’s not a bad thing if it does.

Reduce any liquids until they are almost all gone. Add the duck/garlic spinach/mushroom mix back to the pan and combine with the cherry/currants.

Toss in the fresh microgreens. Spoon the mixture into the Potato Tube.

Use the reduced liquid in the pan to sauce the plate.

Boil potatoes in a pot with a generous pinch of salt. Cook until potatoes are easily pierced with a fork. Drain water and mash potatoes. Set aside to cool.

Heat a small pan with 1½ T of oil over medium heat. Add onions and cook for about two minutes. Add ginger, garlic, and a pinch of salt, and cook for 30 seconds, until fragrant. Mix in diced red pepper and cook for two minutes. Add peas and scallions and cook for one minute. Turn off heat.

Mix mashed potatoes, curry powder, and vegetables. Taste and adjust seasonings to your liking. 

Fill a small bowl with water. You’ll use this to help seal the pot stickers.

Dip wrapper into water, about ¼ to ½ inch deep. Circle wrapper around so that the edges are moist. Lay wrapper on your left hand, wet side away from you. Add about a spoonful of filling. Using your right hand, start sealing dumpling by pinching wrapper together. Using your index fingers, pinch moistened side into a pleat and press down to seal. Continue until the entire dumpling is pleated and sealed.

To cook them, heat a large sauté pan with a tablespoon of oil over medium-high heat. When the pan is hot, line the pot stickers in the pan, bottom side down. Have the lid of your pan ready for the next step. Let the pot stickers fry for about a minute, then pour about ¼ cup of water in the pan. The oil will start splattering, so cover pan immediately with the lid. Cook for about five minutes. Make sure that your wrapper fully cooks. Uncover lid and cook for another minute, until the bottoms of the dumplings are deep golden brown.

Plate and serve pot stickers with your favorite dipping sauce.

Scrape seeds from vanilla beans with a paring knife. Heat milk, cream, salt, ¾ cups sugar and vanilla beans (seeds and pod) in a sauce pan. Cover, remove from heat, and let steep for 10 minutes.

In a separate bowl, stir together egg yolks. Gradually pour some of the milk mixture into the yolk, whisking constantly. Scrapes warmed yolks and milk back into the saucepan. Add potato purée and cook over medium low heat, stirring constantly with a wooden spoon until thick and mixture coats the back of the spoon. Strain potato custard through a fine-mesh strainer and cool completely. Reserve ¼ cup custard for garnish.

Freeze remaining custard in your ice cream maker according to manufactures instructions.

Rinse potato slices until water runs clear. Squeeze out as much moisture as possible.

Heat oil in a saucepan to 300 degrees F. Fry potatoes until golden brown and crisp. Drain well and toss in a bowl with 2 T sugar and cinnamon while still warm. Set aside to cool.

Scrub clean potatoes. Cover potatoes with water and add salt and sugar. Bring to a simmer and cook until potatoes are soft. Transfer to a food processor and puree until smooth. Push potato pulp through a mesh strainer and reserve.

Prick each potato once or twice with the tip of a knife. Place on a tray or on oven rack and bake at 400°F until centers are soft, 45 to 60 minutes. Remove skins while warm.

Working quickly with warm potatoes, push through a ricer or food mill into a large bowl or onto a lightly floured work surface.

Whisk together eggs, yolks, and oils in a small bowl. Pour over potatoes and mix in with hands or large silicone spatula, while gradually adding about 2 cups flour, working just enough to form a soft dough. Do not over work.

Before proceeding, test-cook a few gnocchi in boiling salted water. Allow to cook until they rise to the surface, usually three to four minutes. Cooked gnocchi should be light and pillowy. If too soft, work in a little more flour to the remaining dough before proceeding.

Divide dough into 12 equal pieces. Keep the dough covered while rolling gnocchi.

Working on a flour-dusted work surface, roll one piece of dough into a rope ½- to ¾-inch diameter. Using a floured bench scraper, cut into one-inch pieces. If desired, roll each piece on the back of a fork to make indent lines.

Place rolled gnocchi on semolina flour-dusted sheet pan while preparing remaining gnocchi. Cover tightly with plastic if not using immediately. May be refrigerated up to one day but best to use immediately.

Bring a large pot of salted water to a boil. Working in batches, or cooking per serving, drop the gnocchi into boiling water and cook as directed above. Remove from water with a slotted spoon or large mesh sieve. Serve immediately or transfer to a sheet pan to cool.

Blanch pea tendrils and spinach in boiling salted water for three minutes. Drain and transfer to an ice water bath. When cool, drain well.

Blend with oil and salt in a blender or processor until smooth. Store refrigerated in a covered container for up to three days.

Melt butter in a skillet over medium heat; sauté garlic and shallot until softened.

Add wine and simmer until reduced by about half.

Stir in ¼ cup Pea Tendril Purée, peas, and snap peas. Cook just until peas are tender-crisp, adding a few tsp of hot gnocchi water if needed to thin sauce.

Spoon sauce over hot boiled or browned gnocchi. Garnish with Parmesan, fresh black pepper, and a drizzle of olive oil.