Ingredients

For the Duck

1 Whole Duck
1 small jar of blueberry jam 2 sprigs of rosemary
2 sprigs of thyme
4 cloves of garlic
1 orange, zest only
salt to taste

For the Braised Beets

4 large beetroots
4 medium sized onions
1 bottle of mulled wine (or 750ml of homemade mulled wine)
2 bay leaves
1 orange, no zest, halved
1⁄2 tsp crushed black pepper
2 tsp unsalted butter
salt to taste
Greens to garnish

Castello Monaci – Primitivo di Manduria “Tautor” 2018

A quality Primitivo di Manduria, full of aromas of macerated red fruit on the nose, blackberry and currant jam ending with iodised notes due to the proximity of the sea and spicy notes. Warm, smooth, elegant and profound on the palate. The refined tannins

and forest fruit forward profile will be a perfect pairing for a glazed duck, while the mulled wine spices will complement beautifully the spicy character of Primitivo. A great festive combination! farsonsdirect.com

Method:

With a sharp knife, remove the breasts and the legs from the duck, season them with salt and place them in a dish.

Chop the garlic, thyme, rosemary and orange zest, and mix them with the duck. Leave to sit for at least 20 minutes at room temperature.

While the duck is marinating, peel the beets and the onions, and chop lengthwise into quarters.

Place the vegetables into a roasting dish and toss with salt.

Place the duck legs, orange halves, bay leaves, mulled wine, black pepper and butter into the dish. Cover the dish with baking sheet and braise for 1.5 hours at 180oC. once done the mulled wine should have almost completely

evaporated, leaving behind a nice gravy consistency.

Next, pat the duck breasts dry with a little kitch- en roll and place them skin side down in a cold pan. Place the pan on a low heat and cook
for 15 minutes on the skin side. This process will draw out the fat from the skin.

Once cooked for 15 minutes flip the breasts over. Turn the heat up high, add the jam to the skin side of the breasts and cook for a further 5 minutes.

Once cooked, remove the breasts from the heat and leave to rest on a plate for 5 minutes. To serve, cut the breasts into slices, add the garnishes to the serving dish, decorate with edible greens, and a little more jam.