For the first few years my parents had the farm, they raised Muscovy ducks, the domesticated white variety. Their eggs were a pleasure to bake with and their meat was delicious. Unfortunately, the bald eagles that lived nearby were awfully fond of them, too, so they disappeared one by one. Eventually, my parents tired of replenishing the eagles’ larder and stuck to chickens and geese after that.
I don’t have duck often now, so it’s nice to have a reminder of how easily it makes a delicious meal. This week’s dish required turning on the oven and a little time in front of the stove, on a hot summer’s day. It was worth braving the extra heat for this combination of duck with the peaches that are just hitting their peak here.
I only made a quarter of the recipe, as I knew I’d be eating it alone. I had some lovely peaches I’d picked up at Kerrisdale Farmers Market earlier in the week and I was eager to put them to good use. They were clingstone, so the finished dish wasn’t exactly as Dorie had envisioned it, but they were organic, perfectly ripe, and delicious nevertheless.
I used one for the duck dish and sliced the rest up for this peach crisp, which I modified by adding more (gluten-free) oats to the topping and reducing the amount of (again, gluten-free) flour. I should have made some modifications to the bottom as well, though. Next time, I’ll combine the sour cream mixture with the fruit, while adding some spices or herbs. As written, it’s good, but a little blander than I’d like.
As for the duck, Dorie’s instructions were perfect, save for the temperature of the pan. I had to turn it down from medium-high to a little less than medium to keep from burning the skin of the duck. The pan sauce was perfectly balanced, balsamic and white vinegars against the honey and port wine. (I made a half recipe of the sauce, and sopped the extra up with a little bread.)
This made a perfect summer meal, with some salad on the side, but it would also make a lovely summer appetizer, too. Especially for those prudent enough to take their cooking outside.
You can find many other blogged descriptions of this week’s FFWD recipe here: Duck Breasts With Fresh Peaches
One Wet Foot 
The eagles definitely had good taste! I’m jealous of your perfectly ripe peaches.
I’d forgotten how easy it was to make duck! So glad you enjoyed, too!
Perfectly ripe peaches are such a treat! I haven’t had peach cobbler in a while and now I have a hankering for some. Have a great weekend!
I am glad you enjoyed this and finishing it with peach dessert was perfect. Have a great
weekend.
I turned my heat down a bit, too. This had to be one of my favorite entrees for FF. Your meal looks perfectly yummy! Fresh fruit in season is the best!!
Teresa, this looks like such an elegant meal – I love duck and the combination of sweet and savory in this recipe is very appealing – since we were “out of the country” for a bit, I did not get to make this dish, but there is “make-up” week this Friday, I am sure that I will get a chance to make this lovely recipe. I like that you got to use fresh, local peaches for this recipe – such a nice touch!
Have a nice Sunday!
Nature… Now why do you think the eagles loved the ducks but not the geese? I can understand why they’d picked either one of those over chicken. I really enjoyed this, and have come to enjoy cooking duck at home. The peach crisp looks like a good one. I’m still waiting for the backyard blackberries to ripen so I can try the blackberry basil crisp recipe, so I’ll try this one in the meantime. My kind of desserts!
Thanks for the introduction to Seven Spoons. I’d never been to that site before, but the recipes all look amazing!
It really is a great recipe 🙂 Next time I’ll be making it in my own kitchen so I’ll know the heat of my pan and stovetop!
The pan sauce was wonderful – such a real treat.
My grandmother used to raise chickens, but I can’t imagine what having ducks around would be like (Hopefully, they didn’t try to nip at your ankles like my grandmother’s chickens used to do to me).
haha, I’m thinking about making peach crisp with the rest of my leftover peaches!!
I have now made it twice and I do agree that the pan temperature needs to come down. I did it instinctively when I set those pups in on the pan but seeing you say it here makes me wish I had said as much on my post too. Good call. I’m enjoying the full-throttle peach season we find ourselves in and this dish was the perfect way to get them to the dinner table.
I wish I had doubled down on the sauce, Teresa, because I didn’t have enough left to sop up with bread. Everything about this entrée was delicious, in my opinion. And I was reminded how easy it is to make duck at home rather than waiting to order it in a restaurant. I don’t eat out very much so I’ll make this more at home now. Our peaches are good. I enjoyed reading about your parent’s experience with the bald eagles. Love those birds but they do have their way with smaller creatures.