I bought a vintage Le Creuset Pate/Terrine pan at an antique store in Bath, Maine, perfect for Duck Terrine with Apricots. I loved it when I first saw it, but wanted to sleep on it. Since it was all I could think about the next day, I called the store and they mailed it to me. It has been sitting on my counter patiently waiting to be used for a Terrine, so here it is. I know this may seem like a lot of steps, but it is worth the effort. It is a combination of several recipes I found by searching through my French cookbooks. You can taste the layers of flavor which are such a great combination of duck, chicken livers, pork, and subtle spices. It is very rich, a little goes a long way. It is important to let it sit at least 3 days before you serve it. I hope you like it as much as we do, it is delicious on a crusty baguette with a Cornichon pickle.
Makes: 1 loaf plus some, if you use the Le Creuset Terrine #32 (1.5 quart)
Serves: 8
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 1 hour and 30 minutes
Sit Time after Cooking: At least 3 days, it just gets better, every day (Will last in refrigerator up to 10 days)
¾ cup dried apricots, diced
½ cup Cognac or brandy (I used Cognac)
12 ounces duck meat, boneless, skinless, cubed
1 ¾ cup unsmoked, thick cut bacon, cubed
8 ounces chicken livers
1 ¾ pounds pork, ground
4 small shallots, about ½ cup, peeled and minced
2 cloves of garlic, peeled and minced
2 tablespoons Dijon mustard
2 teaspoons sea salt
1 teaspoon dried thyme
½ teaspoon, King Arthur’s Apple Pie Spice (contains: cinnamon, nutmeg and allspice)
¼ teaspoon dried ground cloves
¼ teaspoon dried ground ginger
Black Pepper, freshly ground
2 large eggs
Preheat oven to 350° F. Lightly butter or spray a 11.5 x 3.25 x 2.5 inch terrine or a 9 x 5 x 3 inch loaf pan. Cut and butter a small piece of parchment paper for the top of your terrine or loaf pan.
- In a small saucepan, heat the apricots with the Cognac until the liquid begins to simmer. Remove from the heat, cover and set aside.
- Place the cubed duck meat with the cubed unsmoked bacon on a small sheet pan and place in the freezer, freeze until the edges of the meat are frozen.
- In a food processor, with the blade, puree the chicken livers, add the slightly frozen duck meat and bacon and pulse until the mixture is almost a smooth paste, but you can still see chunks.
- In a large bowl, add the mixture from the food processor, ground pork, shallots, garlic, mustard, salt, thyme, Apple Pie Spice mixture, cloves, ginger and freshly ground pepper. Mix well.
- Add the eggs and the plumped dried apricots and their liquid and mix really well.
- Gently pack it in the terrine or loaf pan. Place the cut and buttered parchment over the top, then seal with aluminum foil.
- Set the terrine or loaf pan in a larger baking dish and add enough hot water to reach halfway up the outside of the loaf pan.
- Bake for about 1 ½ hours, or until an instant read thermometer registers 160° F.
- Remove from the oven, lift the terrine out of the water bath, drain the hot water. Put the terrine back into the baking dish and place a brick or flat heavy object covered in aluminum foil (I used bricks) on the foil top of the terrine and let it cool to room temperature.
- Once cooled, refrigerate the terrine, with the bricks, for at least 3 days before serving. Run a knife around the inside of the terrine to loosen and turn it out onto a board or a platter and serve in slices. It may crumble a bit, that’s OK, it is a chunky, country style terrine.
Serve: On crusty bread and Cornichons (extra fine gherkins).
Note: I had a little terrine mixture left, I cooked it in a small metal loaf pan (approx. 3 x 5 x 2 inch) in a water bath alongside the larger one; cook for about 1 hour, until the internal temperature reaches 160° degrees F.
RESOUCE LINKS:
Breville 16 Cup Food Processor
Taylor Instant Read Thermometer
Vintage Le Creuset Terrine
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