I have been having difficulty finding fresh ingredients for our French Fridays with Dorie Fall selections. Still haven’t found the elusive Jerusalem artichokes and I couldn’t find kumquats this week. One alternate given for kumquats was tangerines which I couldn’t find either. We decided to stay simple and substitute with orange. So really I made Duck A L’Orange.
I enlisted the help of my husband to cook the duck. I did not want to make a mistake with our $13.99 per pound duck breasts. I think he cooked the duck perfectly but since I haven’t ever ordered duck before I am not much of a judge. My husband was more critical of his skills but he orders duck much more often than I do. I rather liked eating it and Dorie has helped me expand my food repertoire.
I was the sous-chef and made all the sauces. For my orange substitution, I used the rind of the orange in the simple syrup, then peeled the orange of its white pith and placed slices of orange in the sauce. The flavors worked well together and my husband really liked eating the orange with the duck. One complaint I have about this dish is the number of pans required and then you add on any side dishes that you made and you have a load of dishes.
I made mashed potatoes to go along with it because I had potatoes on hand to use up. I also served carrot souffle because I had that leftover, I usually wouldn’t serve two mashed items together. I think this is another dish that comes with bragging rights. I would make it again for a special occasion.
These recipes are part of an international cooking group working our way through Around My French Table by Dorie Greenspan. To see what others did go here
CafeMomCooks 
We had to adapt, too! We also served leftover souffle, but ours was spinach! LOL! I did finally get the Jerusalem Artichokes at Whole Foods after I requested them. So glad you enjoyed your version of this recipe!
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I used an orange too and loved it. I am with you on the number of pans – sheesh, I hate washing up.
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I have to admit that it felt a little odd to make \”a simplified version of duck a l'orange\” before I've ever even tasted, much less cooked, the original.
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Great teamwork! I also used regular orange in my sauce and enjoy it. The carrot soufflé looks delicious.
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Duck a l'orange is a fine substitute! Nice!
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I am glad you and your husband enjoyed he duck a l'orange! Great sauce, right?Have a great weekend.
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Diane, I completely agree about the number of pots and pans for this dish! It created quite the mess in my kitchen! Your duck à l'orange looks fabulous and I bet it tasted great, too. Oh, and yes, I'm in California as well, toward the southern part of the state, hence the being so excited for it to rain!
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This was a delicious meal, and yours looks lovely! It was a winner in my house, too! Even my fussy eater loved it! Happy Friday, Diane!
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some of the Dorie dishes require several vessels! Sometimes you can consolidate the number of dishes by cooking things out of order but sometimes its hard… 😦 Looks like you enjoyed a great meal though!
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Yup – bragging rights, indeed!Nice substitutions – the carrots sound delicious.
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I always use lots of pots and pans, so I didn't notice this recipe using more than usual. I couldn't get kumquats either. Looks like a great meal!
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I love this recipe, the combination of orange, duck and the sauce was really delicious.I have enjoyed all the duck recipes that we made from this book, each different, but each equally good. I agree with your husband, the orange and duck go so welltogether.
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I agree, Diane. There were a lot of pans!!! Your duck and sauce look great.
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Diane, I love duck à l` orange and your finished plate looks wonderful with that lovely red wine sauce, the sliced oranges, the mashed potatoes and the carrot soufflé.
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Orange was the perfect substitution since this dish was inspired by duc a l'orange. I'm glad you liked it!
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